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THE MEMOIRS 

OF 

PAUL KEUGER 



THE MEMOIRS 

OF 

PAUL KRUGER 

FOUR TIMES PRESIDENT OF THE 
SOUTH AFRICAN REPUBLIC 

TOLD BY HIMSELF 




NEW YORK 

1902 



THE LI2?;A-{Y OP 
CONCif!E3S, 

NOV. 9* 'fqr,7 

CLASP Ouyyr Mo. 

oory B. 



.8 



Copyright, 1902, by 
The Century Co. 



Published November, 1902. 



The DcVinne Prcm. 



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PUBLISHERS' NOTE 

Mr. Kruger dictated these Memoirs to Mr. H. C. 
Bredell, his private secretary, and to Mr. Piet Gro- 
bler, the former Under Secretary of State of the 
South African Repubhc. These gentlemen handed 
their notes to an editor, the Rev. Dr. A. Schowalter, 
who spent several weeks at Utrecht in constant col- 
loquy with JMr. Kruger, elucidating various points 
with the aid of the President's replies to a hst of some 
hundred and fifty to two hundred questions which 
Dr. Schowalter had drawn up. 

The English and American edition has been trans- 
lated by Mr. A. Teixeira de Mattos from Dr. Scho- 
walter's revised German text, collated line for line 
with Mr. Kruger's original Dutch; with this differ- 
ence that, in this edition, Mr. Kruger speaks in 
the first person throughout, whereas, in the Conti- 
nental editions, the narrative is allowed to change 
into the third person from the point at which he be- 
gins to attain a prominent position in the affairs 
of his country. This latter arrangement, which ap- 
peared on reconsideration to be an artificial one, has 



been altered in this translation, and it has also been 
decided that, after JNIr. Kruger's death, all subsequent 
Continental editions shall be printed in the first per- 
son throughout. 

In the Appendix have been collected several docu- 
ments in the shape of speeches, proclamations and 
circular dispatches, including the famous three hours' 
speech delivered by INIr. Kiniger, after liis inaugu- 
ration as President for the fourth time, on the 12th of 
JMay 1898. 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER I 
Early Days and Private Life 

PAGE 

Homeless — In the new home — Himting adventures — 
Kruger kills his first lion — The dead lion roars — Fur- 
ther lion-himts — Panther and rhinoceros hunting — 
Under a rhinoceros — Buffalo hunting — A fight with a 
bufi'alo-cow — Elephant hunting — Race between Kruger 
and an elephant — Canine fidelity — Kruger amputates 
his own thumb 1 

CHAPTER II 

Commencement of Public Activity 

Journey to the Sand River in 1852 — The Sand River 
Convention — Punitive expedition against the Kaffir 
Chief Secheli — Kruger's life in danger — Vindictive 
raid on the Kaffir chiefs Makapaan and Mapela — 
Kruger alone in the cave among the besieged Kaffirs — 
He recovers Potgieter's body — Expedition against 
Montsioa — Kruger charges a band of Kaffirs single- 
handed 35 

CHAPTER III 

In a Position of Command 

The first Basuto War — Kruger assists the Orange Free 
State against the Basutos and negotiates the peace with 
Moshesh — Kruger as general in the field against the 
Kaffir chief Gasibone 53 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER IV 
The Civil War: 1861-1 86 i 

PAGE 

Krugcr's protest against the violation of the constitution 
by Commandant General Schoeman — Assembly of the 
people at Pretoria — Kruger's declaration of war — At- 
tempts at a settlement and their frustration by Schoe- 
man — Kruger is nominated a voting member of the 
Reformed Church, in order that he may be qualified to 
hold office in the State without opposition — Fresh nego- 
tiations — Military preparations on both sides — The 
political contest develops into a religious war — Battle 
of Potchefstroom — Schoeman's flight — Renewed nego- 
tiations — The arbitration award of the Supreme Court 
rejected — Kruger insulted — Battle of Zwartkopje — 
Fresh negotiations — Mutual amnesty — The new elec- 
tions — Kruger again Commandant General .... 67 

CHAPTER V 

Native Wars 

Tlie Transvaalers again come to the Orange Free State's 
assistance against the Basutos, under Moshesh, but 
break up in discord — Kruger's accident in 1866 — 
Fighting in the Zoutpansberg — Lack of ammunition 
and support — Kruger alone among the Kaffirs ... 93 

CHAPTER VI 

President Burgers 

Dispute about Kimbcrley — Kruger's })rotcst against the 
court of arbitration to which President Prctorius has 
yielded — Prctorius resigns the Presidency — T. F. Bur- 
gers elected by a large majority, notwithstanding Kru- 
gcr's agitation — Explanation between Kruger and Bur- 

viii 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

gers — Burgers's policy — ^War with Secucuni — Dispute 
about the arbitrary war-tax imposed by the President — 
Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the British Governor of 
Natal, arrives with his plans for annexation — Confer- 
ences with Shepstone — Burgers's difference with Kru- 
ger and the Volksraad — Kruger elected Vice-president 
— The annexation of the Transvaal — Protest of the 
Executive Raad against the annexation 103 

CHAPTER VII 

The Interregnum under the British Flag 

Kruger's first visit to London with the deputation sent to 
procure the repeal of the annexation — Popular meet- 
ings and popular voting in the Transvaal — The second 
visit to London — The Kaffir chief Secucuni puts the 
English doctrine into practice — The British Governor 
seeks Kruger's assistance against Cetewayo, the Zulu 
king — Further assemblies of the people and protests 
against the annexation — Kruger pacifies the masses — 
The High Commissioners, Sir Bartle Frere and Sir 
Garnet Wolseley, interfere — The other Afrikanders ask 
for the freedom of their Transvaal brothers — Kruger 
suspected of treachery — The delegates of the burgher 
meetings arrested for high treason — Kruger once more 
allays the storm — Plans for confederation opposed by 
Kruger — Sir Bartle Frere tries to treat privately with 
Kruger — Kruger refuses on the grounds of Frere's 
double-dealing — Kruger and Joubert have recourse to 
Gladstone by letter — ^All hopes of a peaceful solution 
abandoned 123 

CHAPTER VIII 

The War of Independence: 1880—1881 

The seizure of Bezuidenhout's wagon — Meeting of the 
burghers at Potchefstroom — The " Irreconcilables " at 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Paadcr Kraal elect a triumvirate, consisting of Kruger, 
Joubert and Pretorius, to carry on the government — 
The first shot — Battle of Bronkhorstspruit — Majuba 
Hill — Paul Kruger during the war — His negotiations 
with the Kaffir chief Magato, whom England was trying 
to gain as an ally — Armistice and peace negotiations — 
Protests in the Volksraad — " Transvaal " or " South 
African Republic " ? 147 



CHAPTER IX 

Paul Kruger's First Presidency 

The election — The war with the Kaffirs in the Lydenburg 
district — Kaffir disturbances on the south-western fron- 
tiers of the Republic — Boer volunteers, in spite of the 
President's proclamation, enlist under the Chiefs Mo- 
shette and Mankoroane, for their war against other 
Kaffir chiefs, and found the Republics of Stellaland 
and Goshenland on the territory awarded them for their 
services — The Chiefs Montsioa and Moshette place 
themselves under the protection of the Transvaal — 
England protests against this arrangement — Nego- 
tiations regarding the western borders between Kruger, 
Sir Charles Warren and Cecil Rhodes — Kruger's third 
visit to London — Sir Hercules Robinson — Repeal of 
the suzerainty by the London Convention of 188i — 
Visits to the European Governments — Dr. Lcyds 
— Internal situation of the Republic in 1885 — The 
Dclngoa Bay Railway — L'^nsatisfactory condition of the 
finances — Disturbances on the western frontiers — Dis- 
covery of the gold-fields — The population of the gold- 
fields: the " L^itlandcrs " — Negotiations with tlie Free 
State for a closer alliance — Incorporation of the " Now 
Republic" ^(i5 

X 



CONTENTS 

CHAPTER X 
Paul Kruger's Second Presidency: 1888-1893 

PAGE 

Dr. Leyds appointed State Secretary — Cecil Rhodes 
causes trouble on the northern frontiers of the Repub- 
lic: the Chartered Company; Lobengula; Khama — 
Treaty of alliance between the Orange Free State and 
the South African Republic — Arrangements in favor 
of the Uitlanders: the Law Courts at Johannesburg; 
the Second Volksraad — Paul Kruger's " hatred of the 
Uitlanders " — The Swaziland Agreement — British per- 
fidy — ^the Adendorff trek — Religious differences — Kru- 
ger the " autocrat " — The educational question — New 
elections 187 

CHAPTER XI 

Paul Kruger's Third Presidency: 1893-1898 

The Transvaal National Union — The second Swaziland 
Agreement — Difficulties with the Kaffir tribes in the 
Blue Mountains — The English immigrants refuse to 
perform military service — Sir Henry Loch at Pretoria 
— ^The President insulted — Annexation of Sambaan- 
land and Umbigesaland by England — Solemn opening 
of the Delagoa Bay Railway and tariff war with Cape 
Colony — The Jameson Raid — Mr. Chamberlain's pol- 
icy of provocation — The report of the Mining Com- 
mission — The struggle between the Government and 
the Supreme Court — Sir Alfred Milner — New elec- 
tions — The Queen of England a '' hwaaie vrouw " — 
Closer alliance with the Orange Free State . . . . 211 

CHAPTER XII 

Paul Kruger's Fourth Presidency 

The Bunu Question — Sir Alfred Milner — F. W. Reitz — 
J. C. Smuts — The agitation of the South African 



CONTEXTS 

PAGE 

League — The Edgar Case — The Crisis: the suffrage, 
the suzerainty — The Ultimatum — The War — President 
Kruger during the War — On the way to Europe — On 
foreign soil — Homeless — Conclusion 261 



APPENDIX 



Speeches delivered at the Solemn Inauguration of His 
Honor S, J. P. Kruger as State President of the South 
African Republic, on Thursday, 12 May 1898 . . . 333 

B 

Speech of State President Kruger in the First Volksraad 

on Monday, 1 May 1899 368 



Two Speeches of President Kruger at the Decisive Sit- 
ting of the First and Second Volksraad of 2 October 
1899 376 

D 

Opening Speech of President Steyn at the Annual Session 
of the Volksraad of the Orange Free State at Kroon- 
stid, 2 April 1900 SSI 

E 

Opening Speech of Presidtnt Kruger at the Ordinary 
Annual Session of the First and Second Volksraad of 
the South African Republic at tlic Joint Sitting of 7 
May 1900 385 



CONTENTS 

F 

PAGE 

Speech delivered on the 7th of May by President Kruger 
in explanation of his Opening Speech at the Ordinary 
Session of IpOO 391 

G 

Circular Dispatch from State President Kruger to the 
Commandant Generals, Assistant Commandant Gen- 
erals and Officers 399 

H 

Telegram from the State President to the Commandant 
General ^ 403 

I 

Circular Dispatch from the State President to the Com- 
mandant General, the Assistant Commandants General 
and the Officers 405 

J 

Proclamation by President Steyn against the Annexation 
of the Orange Free State 409 

Index 411 



zni 



CHAPTER I 
EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 



CHAPTER I 

EAKLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

Homeless — In the new home — Hunting adventures — Kruger 
kills his first lion — The dead lion roars — Further lion-hunts 
— Panther and rhinoceros hunting — Under a rhinoceros — 
Buffalo hunting — ^A fight with a buffalo-cow — Elephant 
hunting — Race between Kruger and an elephant — Canine 
fidelity — Kruger amputates his own thumb. 

MY recollections go back to the time when, as 
a boy of nine, I left the land of my birth with 
my parents and my uncles Gert and Theunis Kruger. 
Till then we had lived at Vaalbank Farm, in the 
Colesberg district in Cape Colony, where I was born 
on the 10th of October 1825 as the third child of 
Caspar Jan Hendrik Kruger ^ and Ehsa Steyn, his 
wife, daughter of Douw Steyn, of Bulhoek Farm, 
behind the Zuurberg in Cape Colony. My parents 
were simple farmers, and I grew up at the farm like 
other farmers' lads, looking after the herds and lend- 
ing a hand in the fields. With the exception that an 
old woman prophesied to my mother that her son 

^ The President declares that his ancestors originally came from Ger- 
many, but his family do not know from which town. He only knows 
that the foimder of the African branch of the family married a French- 
woman, and was obliged to fly from the coxintry on account of his religion. 
— Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

3 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Stephaniis Johannes Paulus was destined for a su- 
perior position in life, I do not laiow that any one 
could have had the least notion that God would en- 
trust me with a special mission. 

The first event of importance in my life was our 
departure from home, our trek. I was too young 
at the time to occupy myself much with the reason 
of the great emigration. But I kfiow that my pa- 
rents said they emigrated because the English first 
sold the slaves and, after they had got the money, set 
these slaves free again; and that the money which 
had been awarded in compensation was made payable 
in England, where it could be received either person- 
ally or through an agent. The expenses entailed by 
this method of payment in many cases amounted to 
more than the capital, so that a great many preferred 
to sacrifice what was due to them, rather than be put 
to so much trouble and vexation. But they refused 
to continue to live under such unjust masters. 
Added to this, the Kaffirs repeatedly raided the col- 
ony and stole the Boers' cattle, and the English gen- 
eral, after the Boers had themselves recovered their 
cattle, declared the collective herds to be so much 
booty, out of which tlie Britisli Government must re- 
cover their war-costs before the rest could be distrib- 
uted among tlie former proprietors, wlio had them- 
selves joined in the fighting in order to get back tlieir 
own. The discontcnl caused by this uu just ])roceed- 

4 



EAKLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

ing took a firm hold of the Boer mind; especially 
since each child when quite young receives as his per- 
sonal property a couple of sheep, oxen or horses from 
his parents, which he tends with special care and 
to which his heart becomes attached. Among the 
stolen beasts were naturally those belonging to 
the children, and when those presents, made sacred 
by custom, were detained in such an arbitrary way 
and used for the purposes of a war-indemnity, much 
bitterness was caused. Ajid so my parents and rela- 
tives left house and home for a wild and unknown 
country, and set out, about twenty of them, with 
nearly thirty thousand African sheep and a few hun- 
dred horses and cattle, which they had received 
largely in exchange for the goods they left behind. 

The exodus over the Orange River commenced in 
May 1835. Here my father sold about three thou- 
sand wethers, at a dikketon^ (an old coin, worth a 
little over two shillings) apiece to a butcher, after 
which the expedition proceeded towards the neigh- 
borhood of the Caledon River, and there encamped. 
My occupation here, as well as on our further 
marches, was to drive the cattle and keep them toge- 
ther. The children of most of the emigrants had to 
do this work, for the black servants had nearly all 
remained in the Colony, and, just at that time, when 

1 Obviously a corruption of "ducatoon," the old silver ducat of 
Venice. — Translator's Note. 

5 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

the whole property of the families consisted of herds 
of cattle, their services would have proved specially 
useful.^ 

Other burghers left their home at the same time as 
my parents and were also encamped near the Cale- 
don River. But this was not the Great Trek. That 
took place during the following year, 1836, mider 
Hendrik Potgieter, and was joined by the single 
groups of earlier emigrants. Immediately after this 
junction, a meeting was held, resolutions were passed 
to which all the emigrants had to submit, and a sort 
of government was instituted. But God's Word con- 
stituted the highest law and rule of conduct. Pot- 
gieter was chosen for the fii*st position, that of com- 
mandant. The resolutions which came into general 
force contained, for example, the decree that it was 
unlawful to take away from the natives, by force, 
land or any other of their property, and that no sla- 

' I <im on this occasion able to confirm the authenticity of an ane<'dote 
which tells how a ffcntleman wlio introduced an Enj^lish lord to President 
Kru^rer, thinkinj; that the latter did not bike sufficient account of his 
aristocratic visitor, and hoping; to make a greater impression iijKjn him, 
bcjran to enumerate the important positions which this nobleman occupied, 
and to tell what his ancestors had been. Whereupon the President an- 
swered drily : 

" Tell the tfentleman that I was a cow-herd and iny father a farmer." 

The gentleman who introduced this nobleman was the proprietor of a 
large distillery at Zwartkop in the neighborhood of Pretoria. — X>^' hy 
Ihf F.diUtr of thf (Sfrnuin Kditinn. 

Tlur anecdote is (juite well known in Kngland, where I have often heard 
it told of a certain noble duki- who, at that time, had held no imrticuhr |x>- 
sition outside the (V)urt. but whose father, who was then living, had filled 
more than one important jKJst under Government. — TruiinlaUir'ii X<itt>. 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

very would be permitted. They now proceeded 
jointly to the Vet River and crossed the whole of the 
Free State without depriving the weak native races 
which Hved there of a single thing. The land be- 
tween the Vet and the Vaal Rivers was bartered in 
exchange for oxen and cows by the Kaffir chief who 
ruled there. 

When the first emigrants arrived at the Vaal, and 
were encamped both here and on the Rhenoster River 
in small scattered parties, they were attacked unex- 
pectedly and without having given the least provo- 
cation by the Zulu chief Moselikatse. This Mose- 
hkatse was at that time lord and master of the entire 
country west of the Lebombo and Drakensberg 
Moimtains. All the Makatese tribes in this district 
had submitted to his sway. He treated them hke 
dogs and called them so, and, when vultures passed 
over his " town," he gave orders to kill a few poor old 
men and women and throw them for food to his 
"children," as he called the vultures. The subju- 
gated races hid from him in caves and gorges. When 
Moselikatse heard that men with white faces had 
come from the south, he sent a couple of thousand 
warriors with orders to massacre the invaders. The 
trekkers who were encamped along the Rhenoster 
and Vaal Rivers were divided into small parties, 
which was necessary on account of the dimensions of 
the herds, so as not to cause quarrels about the graz- 

7 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ing lands. They were surprised by Moselikatse's 
robber band, and the greater number of them mur- 
dered. 

After this massacre the JNIatabele went back to 
their towTi, taking the cattle ^^^th them ; but they re- 
turned a fortnight later in great numbers and at- 
tacked the emigrants at Vechtkop, in the Orange 
Free State. But here Sarel Celliers had built a 
strong laager and, -with the 33 men whom he had at 
his disposal, repelled the impetuous attacks of the 
Zulus, from his wagon fortress, causing them heaiy 
losses. Women and children bravely assisted the de- 
fenders of the camp, casting bullets, loading the 
rifles and, in some instances, even taking rifle in hand 
themselves to shoot down the enemy. On their re- 
treat to the jSIoselikatse Pass, near Pretoria, and to 
Marico, two of their principal places, the Kafl^irs car- 
ried off all the emigrants' cattle, as natin-ally they 
could not be taken into the laager, and so were im- 
protected. They also took with them two white chil- 
dren and three half-breeds, of whom nothing was 
ever heard again. 

A small party of burghers, under Potgieter, pur- 
sued tlie enemy as far as the Marico River: God M'as 
witli them and gave them the victory at Zeerust. 
They continued to pursue the enemy further, and in 
the end entered into possession of liis territory. 

8 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

They recovered part of their property and, when 
Mosehkatse had fled, the commando returned. 

A small nmnber of the emigrants now proceeded 
to Natal. To develop the conquered country and 
make it independent, it was necessary to be in 
communication with the outer world, and, in Natal, 
where already a number of emigrants had settled 
and were in treaty for the necessary acquisition of 
land, they hoped to obtain the harbor of Durban. 
But after the treacherous murder of Piet Retief 
and the attack on the settlers by Dingaan's hordes, 
most of the emigrants, including my father, returned 
to the district which is contained within the Free 
State and Transvaal of to-day. My people settled 
at Liebenberg Vlei, in what has since become the 
Orange Free State ; a tract of country which became 
so well known through Kitchener's operations against 
De Wet. 

A commando again crossed the Vaal, in 1839, to 
find and punish Moselikatse, who continued to rob 
and plunder, and also to recover the stolen cattle. I 
took part in this expedition. Potgieter left the 
wagon laager behind at Wonderfontein, in what is 
now the Potchef stroom district, and, with a mounted 
commando, pursued Moselikatse, who continued to 
fall back. The whole country had been devastated 
and all the settlers murdered. Potgieter discovered 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

the Chief iNIagato at Klein Bueffelshoek, near the 
well-known Elephant River in the MagaHesberg, 
where he was hiding. We shall hear of him again, 
for he settled, later, in the neighborhood of Rusten- 
bui'g. He had only a few followers with him and, 
when Potgieter asked him w^here oMoselikatse was, 
he told him that he had already crossed the Crocodile 
River. Asked why he had remained behind and was 
in hiding, he said that he had escaped dui'ing the 
night on the march to the north, and was now hiding 
because he stood in fear of IMoselikatse's bands which 
had been left behind on the oMoselikatse Pass. See- 
ing that it was impossible to overtake Moselikatse 
and that an attack on the entrenched position at 
Moselikatse Pass was out of the question, the com- 
mando returned to the women's camp on the Rhe- 
noster and Vaal Rivers. But as early as the fol- 
lowing year, 1840, Potgieter started with another 
commando, and this time went direct to Moselikatse 
Pass. I took part in this expedition too. Potgieter 
there found a large Kaffir town, wliich he stormed. 
Wlien it was in our hands we recovered a niunber of 
things which had formerly belonged to the trekkers 
who had ])een murdered by Mosclikatsc's orders. 

During tlie pursuit of Moselikatse, the cliief INIa- 
nuigah' lold Potgieter that tlicre was still a force of 
Moselikatse's savages at Strijd])oort in tlie Water- 
hcrg (list rift. Potgieter went tlierc at once and at- 

10 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

tacked the Kaffir camp. But it turned out that we 
were fighting the wrong people. They were not 
Zulus but Rooi, or red Kaffirs who had been forced 
to join Moselikatse's hordes. Directly Potgieter was 
informed of this fact he put a stop to the fighting. 
Mamagali, who had been the cause of this battle, was 
arrested and, after a regular trial by court martial, 
was sentenced to six months' imprisonment. He 
would not have got off so cheaply had he not been 
able to prove that the Rooi Kaffirs had always been 
associated with Moselikatse on the war-path, and that 
he had taken them for Zulus. 

At last the wanderers had found a comparatively 
safe home. It is obvious that the disturbed life which 
they had led till then must have occasioned great 
losses. To institute schools or churches, or a firm and 
regular management of external affairs, was out of 
the question. But the Boer fathers and mothers, for 
all that, looked after the education of their children 
to the very best of their ability. They knew that 
they lived in a country where anything that was once 
neglected was difficult to recover, and that to neglect 
the rising generation meant the ruin of their nation- 
ality. Therefore every Boer taught his children to 
read and write, and, above all, instructed them in 
God's Word. At dinner and supper, as the children 
sat round the table, they had to read part of the Sa- 
cred Scriptures, and to repeat from memory or write 

11 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

down now this and now that text ; and this was done 
day by day unless unusual circumstances made it im- 
possible. That is how my father taught me the Bible, 
and instructed me in its teaching during the even- 
ings. My other course of instruction was covered 
altogether by a period of about three months, with* 
frequent interruptions. My master's name was Tiel- 
man Roos, who found much difficulty in carrying out 
his mission. Whenever the trek came to a resting- 
place and we out-spanned, a small hut was built of 
grass and reeds, and this became the school-room for 
the trekkers' children. This was done during the 
whole journey to the Magaliesberg, where my father 
settled. 

When I was sixteen years old I was entitled to 
choose two farms like any other independent member 
of our community; one as a grazing-place and the 
other for sowing with crops. I lived at Water- 
kloof, and, in 1842, fetched Miss Maria du Plessis, 
from the country south of the Vaal, to be my 
wife.^ 

1 During a journey which he had undertaken in order to visit his betrothed, 
young Kruger found that the torrential waters of the Vaal were so swollen 
as to render it impassable. But his ardor was greater than the danger, 
and his strength mightier than the force of the stream. He drove his 
horses into the water, and, dressed as he was, swam with them across the 
river under conditions which threatened almost certain death. The old 
ferryman, who had not dared to cross the river that day with his boat, 
read him a fine lecture. But it was thrown away. Fortunately the en- 
gagement did not last long enough to render a repetition of this hazardous 
enterprise necessary. — Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

12 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

The wedding took place in the village of Potchef- 
stroom, which began to flourish at that time.^ 

After a period of rest, a new expedition was fitted 
out, in 1845, in order to colonize the conquered coun- 
try. Every participant received the promise of 
another farm in that part of the country. A commis- 
sion, to which my father belonged, had gone to Dela- 
goa Bay during the previous year in order to come 
to an understanding with Portugal regarding the 
mutual frontier, and had agreed that the ridge of the 
Lebombo Mountains should form the frontier be- 
tween Portugal and that part of the country which 
the Boer emigrants wished to colonize. I accom- 
panied this expedition, as deputy field cornet, with 
my father and the other members of our family. We 
went as far north as the present Lydenburg district, 
and there founded the village of Ohrigstad. But we 
found no abiding-place there. Fever, cattle-sickness 
and other evils determined us to return to the Maga- 
liesberg, where I continued to live and acquired sev- 
eral farms by barter. Here, in January 1846, I had 
the misfortune to lose my wife and the little baby 

1 There was at that time as Httle opportunity for church weddings as for 
school instruction or proper preparation for confirmation. The Boer was 
obhged to be, more or less, his own schoolmaster, minister and civil 
servant. Even as in the late war, a landdrost had often to appoint him- 
self, so as to provide for an official qualified to "legalize" marriages. 
Perhaps that accounts for the fact that the otherwise so religious Boers 
looked upon civil marriage as a perfectly natural rite for many years 
before we began to fight for it as a " necessity of our enlightened times." 
— Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

13 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

to whom she had given birth. God gave me another 
hfe-companion in Miss Gezina Suzanna Frederika 
Wilhehnina du Plessis. From this marriage sprang 
nine sons and seven daughters, of whom three sons 
and five daughters are still alive. 

The first care of the new settlers was to secure re- 
liable labor and to induce the black inhabitants of the 
country to undertake it. That was not an easy mat- 
ter. For, although the Kaffir was willing enough 
to work, he was always endeavoring to cheat his mas- 
ter in one way or another. And, as soon as he had 
learned his work, his arrogance often became unbear- 
able. We had constantly to fight this difficulty in 
great ways and small, and the contest sometimes had 
its humorous side. For instance, one New Year's 
Day, I sent a Kafiir from my farm at Waterkloof 
to my mother's farm (I had lost my father in 1852) 
to fetch some raisins. My mother sent me about five 
or six pounds, and said so in a note, which the Kaffir 
conscientiously delivered. But the letter was a proof 
that the Kaffir had robbed me, for the raisins which 
he brought weighed much less than the quantity men- 
tioned in the letter. I asked him what he meant by 
trying to cheat me and why he had eaten nearly all 
the raisins. 

" The letter tells me," I said, " that there were a 
great many more than you brought me." 

" Baas," he replied, " the letter lies, for how could 

14 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

it have seen me eat the raisins? Why, I put it behind 
the big rock under a stone and then sat down on the 
other side of the rock to eat the raisins." 

After I had convinced him that the letter knew 
aU about it nevertheless, he humbly acknowledged 
his fault ; still the thing was not quite clear to him. 

I had a very faithful Kaffir, called April, on one 
of my other farms at Boekenhoutf ontein in the Rus- 
tenbui'g district. During the winter I traveled with 
my cattle to Saulspoort, near Pilaansberg. Before 
going away I called him aside and said: 

" I wiU teach you how to read a letter." 

I then took a piece of paper and drew lines on it. 

" The longest Hues," I continued, " stand for 
melons, the next oranges and the shortest lemons," 
and I added that he was to send me from time to time 
just as many of each of these as were indicated by 
the number of strokes in the letter which I should 
send by a messenger. He was also to send back a 
letter by the messenger and inform me, by means of 
similar lines, how many he had sent of each sort, and 
to close the letter carefully. The Kaffir was im- 
mensely proud of his scholarly attainments, and from 
that moment considered himself immeasurably above 
every other Kaffir. There was really no need to 
tell him not to give my secret away; nothing would 
have induced him to do so. Later on, I sent two mes- 
sengers to him and said simply : 

15 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

" Give this letter to April; he will give you what 
I want." 

This was done ; and when they returned, bringing 
a letter from April, I said: 

" Give me the letter which April has written, so 
that I may see if you have cheated me or not," 

They were simply amazed, and April's scholar- 
ship roused their unbounded envy and admiration. 
They told everybody about the wise April who had 
suddenly learned to read and write. 

At that time there were no missionaries in our 
country; but a pious Kaffir, called David, went 
round among his countrymen in order to teach them 
religion. When this David wanted to teach the 
Kaffirs in my district the Bible and how to read it, 
they refused to learn to read or write. 

" Why," they asked, " should we first learn the 
' book ' and then bother to learn to write, in order to 
be able to read again what we have already learned, 
when Paul Kruger's Kaffir reads and writes without 
knowing the book and without having learned to 
write? " 

David came to me and told me his difficulties, and, 
in order to break down the resistance of the Kaffirs, 
I was obliged to let David into my secret. April 
did not forgive me for a long time, for his impor- 
tance and the admiration of his comrades were now 
things of the past. 

16 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

During the first years of our settlement as well 
as during our wanderings it was our task to clear 
the recently acquired land of wild animals, which 
had hitherto roamed about unrestrained side by 
side with the wild races, and thus to protect our 
pastures. Every Boer took an active part in this 
work, and the rising youth, in whom the love of ad- 
venture had turned hunting into a passion, did a 
great deal, in this way, to make the country habi- 
table. 

It is, of course, impossible that I should be able 
to tell to-day how many wild beasts I have killed. 
It is too much to remember the exact number of 
Hons, buffaloes, rhinoceroses, giraif es and other big 
game; and, besides, it is nearly fifty years since I 
was present at a big hunt. Nor can I recall to mind 
all the details connected with those hunts. As far 
as I know, I must have shot at least thirty to forty 
elephants and five hippopotamuses. And I know 
that I have killed five lions by myself. When I 
went hunting I always took a companion with me, 
as well as good horses; and I made it a rule, on 
larger hunting expeditions, to allow two or three 
wagons of our poor people to accompany us, so that 
they might have the game. 

I shot my first lion in the year 1839. I was then 

14 years of age. A lion had attacked our herds and 

robbed us of several head of cattle that were graz- 
2 17 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ing by the banks of the Rhenoster River in what has 
since become the Orange Free State. Six of us 
started (I was the seventh, but did not count) to 
find that lion. We were all mounted and rode in 
two parties of three, with a good distance between 
the parties. The lion sighted us before we were face 
to face with him, and came on with a wild rush. The 
three adults with whom I had come, my father, my 
uncle and my brother, quickly tied the horses to- 
gether and then turned them round, with their heads 
in the opposite direction to that from which the lion 
was bearing down upon us. This is the regular pro- 
cedure at a lion hunt; for, if the horses catch sight 
of a lion, there is always a danger lest they should 
get frightened and bolt. 

My relatives placed us. I was told to sit behind 
— or, from the lion's point of view, in front of — 
the horses, with my rifle covering him. His last 
bound brought him close to me; then he crouched, 
with the intention, as it seemed to me, of jumping 
right over me on the horses. As he rose, I fired, and 
was fortunate enough to kill him outright, so that 
he nearly fell on top of me. My companions ran to 
my assistance; but I needed no help, for the lion 
was dead. He was a strong beast. 

Hearing the shot, the other three hurried up, and 
then we all stood round the lion and talked the ad- 
venture over. A certain Hugo knelt down to mea- 

18 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

sure the lion's teeth, which were extraordinarily big. 
Thinking no harm, I jumped on the lion's stomach. 
As I did so, the air shook with a tremendous roar, 
which so frightened Hugo that he forgot his tooth- 
measurements and fell down flat upon his back. 
The others shook with laughter, for every hunter 
knows that, if you tread upon a lion's body within 
a short time of his death, he will give a short last 
roar as though he were still alive. The breath still 
in him, being forced from the stomach through the 
throat, produces the roar. Hugo, of course, knew 
this, but he had forgotten it, and was greatly 
ashamed of his fright. In fact, he was so angry that 
he turned on me to give me a good hiding. But the 
others stepped good-naturedly between us and made 
him see that it was only my ignorance that had given 
him so great a fright. 

I shot my second lion behind the Magaliesberg on 
the Hex River. My uncle Theunis Kruger and I 
were after a herd of antelopes when, my horse being 
done up, I was left behind, alone. Riding at a foot- 
pace, I came upon a herd of lions. Escape on a tired 
horse was out of the question. Suddenly one of the 
lions left the herd and made a dash for me. I al- 
lowed him to come within twenty paces and then 
shot him through the head. The bullet passed 
through the head into the body. The lion fell, with 
his head turned away from me, but jumped up 

19 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

again immediately and returned to his companions, 
while I reloaded. The moment he reached the herd, 
he fell down dead. Encouraged by my success, I 
fired upon the others. But in vain. They escaped 
into the nearest mountain, and I was not able to fol- 
low them. A few years later, I had another en- 
counter, on the same spot, with a herd of lions which 
had killed several of our oxen. These also escaped 
into the same mountain; but I succeeded in first 
shooting two of them. My companions, who were 
not so swift of foot, lost their quarry. 

I shot my fifth lion in the Lydenburg district, 
when on a trek towards the Elephant River. We 
were pursuing a brute that had robbed us of several 
oxen. I at that time had a good and faithful dog, 
which was my constant companion, and which used 
to track the lions through the bushes. When he 
found the lion, he stood still, loudly giving tongue 
till the lion roared angrily back at him. When the 
dog saw me coming, he stood aside a little. Now 
the lion got ready for me; but, at the moment of 
springing, the dog seized him from behind, and a 
bullet at close quarters dispatched him quickly. 
This made the fifth lion that I killed by myself. In 
company with others, I have of course shot a great 
many more. 

During a march against Moselikatse, who, a short 
time previously, had surprised and cut down our 

20 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

people, I was ordered to set out with a strong patrol 
from Wonderfontein, where we left our wagons, to 
reconnoiter the enemy's position. At Elephant's 
Pass, in the neighborhood of Rustenburg, we came 
across a big herd of elephants. The pass owes its 
name to this encounter. My father went after them, 
but Commandant Potgieter stopped him from shoot- 
ing, as the enemy might be nearer than we knew. 
Those were the first elephants I saw. 

My first rhinoceros I encountered during that 
same expedition. As I was slightly in advance of 
the others, my uncle Theunis Kruger gave me per- 
mission to fire, and I was so fortunate as to bring 
him down with the first shot. I had an ugly expe- 
rience on the next occasion that we — my brother-in- 
law and faithful hunting companion, N. Theunissen, 
and I — hunted rhinoceros. I must mention that we 
had made an agreement by which that one who be- 
haved recklessly or, through cowardice, allowed 
game which was only wounded to escape should re- 
ceive a sound thrashing. There was something 
wrong with my rifle on the morning we started, and 
I was obliged to take an old two-barreled gun, one 
barrel of which was injured; consequently its driv- 
ing power was considerably lessened. I knew that 
a shot is thrown away on a rhinoceros unless you 
manage to send it through the thin part of its skin. 
We came across three of them, a bull and two cows. 

21 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

They were witharnosters,^ the most dangerous 
brutes. I told Theunissen to follow the two cows 
and not lose sight of them. It was my intention to 
kill the bull, and then join in pursuit of the cows. 
My comrade fired from time to time to let me know 
where he was, for he was soon out of sight in the 
thick undergrowth of the wood. When I had passed 
the rhinoceros, I jumped from my horse to shoot 
him. I placed myself so that he had to pass me 
within ten paces ; this would give me a good oppor- 
tunity to hit him in a vulnerable place. One bullet 
killed him outright. I mounted and rode as fast as 
I could go in the direction whence I heard Theunis- 
sen's gun, loading my rifle as I galloped. He had 
just sent a second bullet into one of the cows as I 
came up. The brute stood quite still. I saw that 
the animal was trying to get away through the un- 
derwood, which was less dense here than anywhere 
else, and I went after her. As I rode past my com- 
rade, he called out: 

" Don't dismount in front of the beast ; she's 
awfully wild and can run like anything." 

I did not pay much attention to the warn- 
ing, knowing Theunissen to be over-cautious, but 
jumped off my horse and ran obliquely past the 
rhinoceros. She had scarcely caught sight of me 

1 Bhenoster is the Afrikander for rhinoceros. Wttharnoster is a white 
rhinoceros. — Translator's Note. 

22 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

before she was in hot pursuit. I allowed her to come 
within a distance of three or foLir yards. When I 
fired, the percussion-cap refused, and there was no 
time for a second shot. The animal was close upon 
me, and there was nothing to be done but to turn 
round and run for dear life. In attempting to do 
so, my foot struck against the thorn roots, and I 
came down flat on my face. The beast was upon 
me; the dangerous horn just missed my back; she 
pinned me to the ground with her nose, intending 
to trample me to death. But, at that moment, I 
tui'ned under her and got the contents of the second 
barrel full under the shoulder-blade, right into her 
heart. I owed my life to not letting go my hold on 
the gun during this dangerous adventure. The rhi- 
noceros sprang away from me, but fell down dead 
a few yards away. 

My brother-in-law hurried up as fast as he could, 
for he thought I had been mortally wounded by my 
own gun in this deadly combat. When he saw, how- 
ever, that I was standing up safe and sound, he took 
his sjambok, and " according to contract " com- 
menced to belabor me soundly, because I had, he 
said, acted recklessly, in disregarding his warning. 
Soft words and attempts to justify my conduct were 
thrown away on him; it availed me nothing to point 
out to him that the beast had already hurt and 
bruised me to such an extent that I might well be let 

23 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

oiF my hiding. I was eventually obliged to entrench 
myself behind the thorn-bushes. But this was the 
first and last time that Theunissen had occasion to 
thrash me. 

I brought down my first buffalo very near the 
above spot. A flying herd of buffaloes came up 
from the valley by the bank of the stream. We 
hunted them, and I led. A buffalo-cow left the 
herd and made a rush for me as I jumped from my 
horse to shoot. I was ready, however, and, when she 
had come very near, shot her through the shoulder. 
The impetus of her onset knocked me down, and she 
rushed on over my body, fortunately without step- 
ping on me. She took refuge on the opposite bank 
of the river, where we killed her. 

My next adventure with buffaloes took place near 
Bierkraalspruit Farm. The underwood was from 
four to five feet high, and contained a number of 
buffaloes. Six of us came to hunt them. I forced 
my way alone through the bushes to see if it was pos- 
sible to get a shot there, and passed a herd of buffa- 
loes without being aware of them; but before long 
I came right upon a second herd of the beasts. A 
big buffalo at once turned his attention to me, but 
fortunately his horns were so wide apart that, in but- 
ting, the trees and bushes got mixed up between 
them, which not only broke the force of his attack, 
but hid me very effectually, if only for a few mo- 

24 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

merits, from liis sight. Trying to get out of the 
wood, I found myself suddenly amongst the herd 
which I had passed a little while ago, without no- 
ticing them at the time. Even now I only realized 
the position when I ran right up against a buffalo 
that was just getting up from the ground. An- 
gered at being disturbed, the beast tore my clothes 
from my back with his hoof. My comrades, as they 
stood outside the wood, took the buffalo's hoof for 
his horns, so high did he raise it in attacking me. 
Fortunately I escaped with a fright. 

My brother-in-law N. Theunissen and I were 
hunting near Vleeschkraal, in the Waterburg dis- 
trict, when I had a most unpleasant encounter with 
a buffalo. I had hit a buffalo-cow, and she had es- 
caped into the dense thorn-bushes. As it was im- 
possible to follow on horseback, I gave my horse to 
my brother Nicholas, and followed the buffalo on 
foot. The great thing was not to lose sight of her 
in the thick undergrowth. Beheving myself to be 
the pursuer, I was unpleasantly startled to find her 
suddenly facing and attacking me. I got ready to 
shoot, but my flint-lock missed fire, so I had to run 
for it. The rains had been heavy, and just behind 
me was a big swamp into which I fell as I jumped 
out of the enraged animal's way. The buffalo fell 
in after me, and stood over me in a threatening atti- 
tude before I had time to get up. 

25 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

My rifle was in the water and useless; but, for- 
tunately for me, as the buffalo butted at me, she 
rammed one of her horns fast into the ground of the 
swamp, where it stuck. I got hold of the other and 
tried with all my strength to force the animal's head 
under the water and so suffocate her. It was a diffi- 
cult thing to do, for the horn was very slippery on 
account of the slimy water, and I needed both hands 
and every atom of strength I had to keep her head 
under. When I felt it going, I disengaged one of 
my hands to get at the hunting-knife, which I car- 
ried on my hip, in order to rid myself of my antago- 
nist. But, if I could not hold the brute with two 
hands, I certainly could not hold her with one, and 
she freed herself with a final effort. She was in a 
sad plight, however, nearly suffocated and her eyes 
so full of slime that she could not see. I jumped out 
of the swamp and hid behind the nearest bush, and 
the buffalo ran off in the opposite direction. My 
appearance was no less disreputable than the buf- 
falo's, for I was covered from head to foot with 
mud and slime. Theunissen, hearing the row we 
made, knew that something was amiss, but he could 
not come to my assistance. It was impossible to get 
through the undergrowth of thorns on horseback. 

When I had cleaned myself down a little, I got 
on the track of the rest of the herd, and succeeded 
in shooting two. 

26 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

I was never so near losing my life as once during 
a race with an elephant. One day, Adrian van Rens- 
burg and I were on the veldt looking for elephants. 
Van Rensburg was behind me, when the first herd 
came in sight. I galloped on to get a good shot at 
them. I could not wait for van Rensburg, for the 
horse I was riding that day was a particularly spir- 
ited animal, and had the habit of running round me 
in a circle after I dismounted. This necessitated my 
quieting and holding him, and so some time was lost 
before I was ready to shoot. As I jumped down, 
one of the elephants caught sight of me, and came 
through the bushes as fast as she could go. At the 
moment of dismounting, I knew nothing of my dan- 
ger, and had not the least idea that an elephant was 
after me. Van Rensburg, however, saw everything, 
and called out as loudly as he could to warn me. I 
turned and saw that the elephant was flattening the 
bushes behind me with her heavy weight as she broke 
though the underwood. I tried to mount, but the 
elephant was already upon me, and the weight of 
the underwood, trodden down and held together by 
the bulk of the elephant, pinned me to the ground. 
I found it impossible to mount. I let go of my 
horse, freed mj^^self with a tremendous effort, and 
sprang right before and past the elephant. She fol- 
lowed, trumpeting and screaming, hitting out at me 
fiercely with her trunk. Now came a race for life 

27 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

or death. However, I gradually increased the dis- 
tance between us; but that was a race I am never 
likely to forget. 

The Kaffirs who were with us were about a hun- 
dred yards away. When they saw what was hap- 
pening, they too commenced to run; so there we 
were : the Kaffirs first, I after them, and after me the 
elephant in furious pursuit. While running, the 
idea came to my mind that I would catch the Kaffir 
who was the poorest runner, and, in case the elephant 
bore down on him, step suddenly aside and kill her 
at close quarters. I had kept hold of my rifle, a big 
four-pounder. But the elephant was so tired out by 
this time, that she herself put a stop to the hunt by 
standing still. Just then van Rensburg came up, 
but his horse stepped into a hole covered with grass, 
and both horse and rider came down, for van Rens- 
burg's foot had caught in the stirrup. Meanwhile, 
the elephant had disappeared. After van Rens- 
burg had found his legs again, I said to him: 

" Hunt in that direction," pointing with my 
finger, " and try to catch my horse ! " 

The elephant, in making her escape, had turned 
first to the north and then to the west, the direction 
in which the herd had moved on. I said to van 
Rensburg : 

" When you have found my horse, bring it after 

28 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

me. Meanwhile, I wiU follow the herd of elephants, 
and not lose sight of them till you join me." 

I soon came up with the female elephant that had 
pursued me. The calf ran a little way behind her. 
I passed it quickly to get near the mother; but it 
screamed when it saw me, and the mother, who 
turned round quickly at the cry, just caught sight 
of me as I jumped into the bushes. I ran as fast as 
I could through the underwood, and came suddenly 
upon van Rensburg, who had caught my horse. 

" There are tse-tse flies here," he said; " we must 
turn back." 

" Very well," I answered, " you go on, but I must 
get a shot first at these elephants which have given 
me so much trouble." 

The mother and her calf had meanwhile disap- 
peared, but, before I made my way back, I was so 
lucky as to shoot two of the herd. Unfortunately 
my horse, whose name was Tempus, had been stung 
by the poisonous flies, and shortly after our return, 
at the commencement of the rainy season, it sickened 
and died. 

When quite a youth I encountered a tiger or pan- 
ther. My Uncle Theunis, his son and I were hunt- 
ing antelope, or elands, near Tijgerfontein Farm, 
in the neighborhood of Ventersdorp, and we soon 
found an antelope in the cover. My cousin rode in 

29 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

front and my uncle followed him; there was a dis- 
tance of about forty yards between them. Sud- 
denly, a panther appeared and made for us at a 
furious rate, although we had given him no provoca- 
tion whatever. He overtook my uncle; but the lat- 
ter's well-aimed shot brought the panther to the 
ground at the very moment when he was leaping on 
the horse which my uncle was riding. 

A big lion-hunt, in which several of us took part, 
gave me the opportunity of witnessing a remarkable 
instance of canine fidelity. We had a whole pack of 
hounds with us. When they had found the herd of 
lions, they surrounded it, barking furiously. One of 
the hounds would go no further from us than about 
twenty paces. There he stood barking; but nothing 
could induce him to join the pack: he was too fright- 
ened to do that, and too faithful to leave us. One 
of the lions made for us and then the poor terrified 
hound was the only one that did not run away. He 
stuck to his post. He trembled and howled with fear, 
to say nothing of more visible signs of distress, and 
every second he looked round anxior^sly at his master 
to see if he Avere still there, hoping, I dare say, that 
he would fly, and that the dog might follow at his 
heels. But the master stayed and so the dog stayed. 
The lion was within ten paces of the dog when we 
shot him. And even now the timid dog was the only 
one of all the noisy pack that attacked him as he fell 

SO 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

under our fire. He nearly died of fear, but remained 
at his post for love of his master. 

In the year 1845, my two brothers Douw and 
Theunis, Douw's wife, my own wife and I were mak- 
ing a halt near Secucuni's town, not far from the 
place where the Spekboom River joins the Steen- 
poort River, in the north of the Transvaal. We out- 
spanned, and I went, in the course of the day, on the 
veldt to shoot some game. I was mounted, and carried 
my old big four-pounder. After about an hour's 
ride, I came across a rhinoceros and shot at it. But 
I only succeeded in wounding the animal, and it fled 
into the wood. I dismounted quickly, ready to shoot 
again, but moved only a few steps away from my 
horse, lest the rhinoceros should turn to attack me, 
in which case it would be necessary to remount at 
once. I succeeded in getting a second shot; but, at 
that very moment, my rifle exploded just where I 
held it with my left hand, and my left thumb, the 
lock and the ramrod lay before me on the ground and 
the barrel of the gun behind me. I had no time to 
think, for the furious animal was almost upon me; 
so I jimaped on my horse and galloped away as fast 
as I could, with the rhinoceros in fierce pursuit, until 
we came to the ford of a little spruit, when my pur- 
suer came to the ground and so allowed me to ride 
quietly in the direction of our wagons. During the 
next day, our people, guided by the track of my 

SI 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

horse, went to the spot, and there they found the rhi- 
noceros still alive, and, following the trail of blood, 
discovered the remains of the rifle and my thimib. 

My hand was in a horrible state. The great veins 
were torn asunder and the muscles lay exposed. The 
flesh was hanging in strips. I bled like a slaughtered 
calf. I had succeeded in tying a large pocket-hand- 
kerchief roimd the wound while riding, to save the 
horse from being splashed with blood. When I got 
to the wagons, my wife and sister-in-law were sit- 
ting by the fire, and I went up to them laughing so as 
not to frighten them. My sister-in-law pointed to 
my hand, which looked like a great piece of raw meat, 
the handkerchief being saturated with blood. 

" Look what fat game brother Paul has been shoot- 
ing ! " she said. 

I called out to my wife to go to the wagon and 
fetch some turpentine, as I had hurt my hand. Then 
I asked my sister-in-law to take off my bandolier, 
and she saw that my hand was torn and noticed how 
white I was, for I had hardly any blood left in my 
body. I kept on renewing the turpentine bandages, 
for turpentine is a good remedy to " burn the veins 
up," as the Boers say, and thus to stop the bleeding. 
I sent my youngest brother — he was still really 
young at the time — to borrow as much turpentine as 
he could get from the nearest farm, which was about 
half an hour's ride away. Herman Potgieter, who 

32 



EARLY DAYS AND PRIVATE LIFE 

was afterwards so cruelly murdered by the Kaffirs, 
came over with his brother. The former got into the 
wagon and, when he saw the wound, cried out : 

*' That hand will never heal; it is an awful 
woimd ! " 

He had to get down again as quickly as possible, 
for he was nigh fainting. But his brother said, pos- 
sibly to comfort me: 

" Nonsense ; I have seen worse wounds than that : 
get plenty of turpentine." 

We inspanned and drove to the farm. Every one 
there advised me to send for a doctor and have the 
hand amputated; but I positively refused to allow 
myself to be still further mutilated of my own free 
will. The two joints of what was once my thumb 
had gone, but it appeared that it would still be nec- 
essary to remove a piece of bone. I took my knife, 
intending to perform the operation, but they took it 
away from me. I got hold of another a little later 
and cut across the ball of the thumb, removing as 
much as was necessary. The worst bleeding was 
over, but the operation was a very painful one. I had 
no means by me of deadening the pain, so I tried to 
persuade myself that the hand on which I was per- 
forming this surgical operation belonged to some- 
body else. 

The wound healed very slowly. The women 

sprinkled finely-powdered sugar on it, and, from 
3 33 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

time to time, I had to remove the dead flesh with 
my pocket-knife ; but gangrene set in after all. Dif- 
ferent remedies were employed, but all seemed use- 
less, for the black marks rose as far as the shoulder. 
Then they killed a goat, took out the stomach and cut 
it open. I put my hand into it while it was still 
warm. This Boer remedy succeeded, for when it 
came to the turn of the second goat, my hand was 
already easier and the danger much less. The wound 
took over six months to heal, and, before it was quite 
cured, I was out hunting again. 

I account for the healing power of this remedy by 
the fact that the goats usually graze near the Spek- 
boom River, where all sorts of herbs grow in abun- 
dance. 



CHAPTER II 

COMMENCEMENT OF PUBLIC 
ACTIVITY 



CHAPTER II 

COMMENCEMENT OF PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

Journey to the Sand River in 1852 — The Sand River Conven- 
tion — Punitive expedition against the Kaffir chief Secheli — 
Kruger's life in danger — Vindictive raid on the Kaffir chiefs 
Makapaan and Mapela — Kruger alone in the cave among the 
besieged Kaffirs — He recovers Potgieter's body — Expedition 
against Montsioa — Kruger charges a band of Kaffirs single- 
handed. 

I WAS appointed a deputy field cornet as early 
as 1842, but my position was not one of any 
importance until 1852, when I was elected a full field 
comet. In this capacity, I accompanied, in that year, 
old Commandant General A. W. J. Pretorius ^ to 
the Sand River, where the famous Sand River Con- 
vention was concluded. 

In that same year, the expedition against the Be- 
chuana chief Secheli took place. I took part in it 
as a commandant. This Secheli was protecting an- 

^ After Pretorius, who had commanded during the War of Independence 
against England in the Free State, came to the Transvaal, the popular 
assembly of 1849 elected Potgieter Commandant General for life ; but 
eventually, in order to avoid unpleasantness, it became necessary to ap- 
point three commandants general all possessing equal powers. Pretorius, 
accordingly, became Commandant General of the Potchefstroom and 
Rustenburg districts where Kruger lived. — Note hy the Editor of the Ger- 
man Edition. 

S7 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

other Kaffir chief, called Moselele, who had com- 
mitted several murders in the South African Repub- 
lic, and refused to deliver him up. The demand for 
Moselele's surrender was received with the insolent 
reply : 

" Who wants Moselele can come and fetch him out 
of my stomach." 

Secheli meant to convey that Moselele was as 
safely hidden with him as the food which he had eaten. 
A commando under Chief Commandant Scholtz, 
with myself as deputy-commandant, was sent to pun- 
ish him. When the commando arrived before Se- 
cheli's town, the Kaffir chief sent a messenger to 
Commandant Scholtz to say that he would do no- 
thing to him on the morrow, as that was a Sunday, 
but that he would duly settle his account on the Mon- 
day. At the same time, he very artlessly asked for 
some coffee and sugar, probably in return for his 
amiability in " letting us oiF " for Sunday. Com- 
mandant Scholtz sent back word to Secheli that he 
had coffee and sugar, but none to give away. He 
promised, however, to give him pepper on Monday. 

On Monday morning the battle began. I was well 
in front, and brought down a number of Kaffirs with 
my four-pounder, which I had loaded with coarse shot. 
When the mountain on which Secheli's town lay was 
already partly taken, Louw du Plessis, who was serv- 
ing the guns, accidentally hit a large rock, and the 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

ball, rebounding, struck my head with such force that 
I fell to the ground unconscious. A certain van 
Kooyen had to help me to my feet, and at the same 
time bound up my aching head in a cloth. While 
I was lying unconscious and van Rooyen was busying 
himself about me, a Hottentot servant of my bro- 
ther's, thanks to his accurate aim, kept the Kaffirs at 
a safe distance. When I came to myself, the first 
thing I saw was that the Kaffirs were creeping up 
behind rocks and boulders, and I realized the danger 
to which my burghers would be exposed if they were 
not warned in time. I at once got up to lead the 
attack on the dangerous points, although my wound 
prevented me from carrying my musket. The Kaf- 
firs kept up a hot fire from every cave and gorge, but, 
after a sharp fight, the burghers succeeded in driving 
them from the mountain. 

My life was in danger for a second time during 
this same battle. One of the enemy's bullets, fired 
from a huge rifle, struck me on the chest and tore my 
jacket in two. The artful Secheli afterwards said 
that he had, up to the last, had it in his power to drive 
us back, but that, when I had once laid my hands on 
his brandy-bottle, I became invincible. As a matter 
of fact, I have never tasted a drop of brandy. 

After hostilities were concluded. Commandant 
Scholtz sent up to the house of Livingstone, the Eng- 
lish missionary, which was not far from the Kaffir 

. 39 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

town. Here Theunis Preterms found a complete 
workshop for repairing guns, and a quantity of ma- 
terials of war which Livingstone was storing for Se- 
cheli. This was a breach of the Sand River Con- 
vention of 1852, which prescribed that neither arms 
nor ammunition should be supplied to the Kaffirs, 
and that they should not be permitted to provide 
either for themselves. Scholtz accordingly confis- 
cated the missionary's arsenal, and in consequence the 
[Boers were abused by Livingstone throughout the 
length and breadth of England, and slandered in 
every possible way as enemies of the missionaries and 
cruel persecutors of the blacks. 

As a matter of fact, the Boers were neither op- 
posed to the mission nor enemies of the natives. 
Their principle was to allot a certain district to every 
tribe that kept quiet and peaceful and was wilHng 
to accept civilization; such district to be proportion- 
ate to the size of the tribe. The missionaries who 
wished to labor among the natives also received free 
grants of land for the erection of churches and for 
private purposes. Even before the arrival of the 
missionaries beyond the Vaal, some of the Boers had 
instructed their native servants in the Gospel. But 
they were often brought into unpleasant contact with 
the native tribes owing to the engagement into which 
they had entered to deprive the natives of the arms 
which the latter were constantly smugghng into the 

40 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

country. This engagement was faithfully kept so 
that England might have no opportunity to accuse 
them of violating the treaty and, consequently, to 
annul the Sand River Convention, which guaranteed 
the liberty of the emigrants north of the Vaal.^ 

1 The missionaries seem often to have failed to understand that, for the 
Boers, the native question was, necessarily, not only religious and humani- 
tarian, but also political. South Africa has room for only one form of 
civilization, and that is the white man's civilization; and, where there was 
only a handful of white men to keep hundreds of thousands of black 
natives in order, severity was essential. The black man had to be taught 
that he came second, that he belonged to the inferior class which must 
obey and learn. Lest it should appear as though the friendly and reason- 
able position adopted by the Boers in this matter had only developed 
gradually in recent years, I may point out that, in 1882, Mr. Kruger 
spoke to the following effect in his program issued before his first election 
and, afterwards, in the name of his people, as President : 

" Native politics in a Republic such as ours, where so many Kaffir 
tribes live among us and all around us, offer very exceptional difficulties. 
The chief principle that must always be borne in mind is that savages must 
be kept Avithin bounds, and always overruled by justice and morality." 

And again: 

" Much is being said about a universal native policy for the various states 
of South Africa. All who know the difficulties of this problem will most 
certainly agree with me when I say that the greatest benefactor of South 
Africa would be the man who could provide a completely satisfactory 
solution to this question. That man is perhaps as yet unborn. Mean- 
while, as regards our Republic, her duty, or, rather, her mission is clear 
and simple. Every Kaffir tribe within our boundaries must be taught to 
respect the authority of our Government, and, in order that the laws, by 
which these tribes also benefit, may be equitably administered, they must 
bear their share of the public burden. When once the disastrous influence 
of foreigners and enemies of the Republic, who now so often try to per- 
suade these unfortunate Kaffirs that they need not consider themselves sub- 
jects of the Republic, when once this influence has been done away with, 
then the time will have come when the native tribes will reap the prosper- 
ous fruit of the old principle of the Republic, by which every tribe of any 
importance has a fixed territory appointed to it, under the protection of 
the Government. For what was determined in the Convention regarding 

41 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

The next war in which I took part under Com- 
mandant General Pretorius was that of 1853, against 
the Kaffir chiefs Mapela and Makapaan, in the 
Waterberg district, near Makapaanspoort. This 
was an expedition to avenge the foul murder of Her- 
man Potgieter, brother of the late Commandant 
General.^ This Potgieter was a splendid shot and 
a great elephant-hunter. Mapela had sent for him, 
saying that there happened to be an exceptionally 
large number of elephants in his territory. More- 

this distribution of territory is nothing more than the old law of the Re- 
public. As for the future, I cherish the hope that some time, under God's 
blessing, it will come to this, that order, industry and the fear of God 
will make the Kaffir also a happy and contented subject of the South 
African Republic." 

At the end of the speech delivered at his inauguration as State Presi- 
dent in 1888, in connection with his admonition to the children and 
teachers to profit by the advantages of the education provided by the 
Republic, he added these words : 

"You colored people, 

"A short word to you too. You have a right to the protection of the 
laws of this Republic. Whether you make use of the opportunities given 
you to acquire civilization depends upon yourselves. You are free to 
accept civilization or to reject it. For you also I pray for the blessing of 
Almighty God." 

Kruger was elected President upon the first of these declarations, and 
he called down a blessing upon the blacks, on a solemn occasion, in his 
official character. This, therefore, permits us to draw definite conclusions 
as to the attitude of the people in regard to this question. — Note hy the 
Editor of the German Edition. 

1 Commandant, afterwards Commandant General Hendrik Potgieter, 
who is so closely connected with the history of the Kruger family, had, in 
the meantime, died, at the beginning of March, 1855, and his son Piet 
had been appointed to succeed him as Commandant General for the 
Lydenburg and Zoutpansberg districts, — Note by the Editor of the German 
Edition. 

42 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

over, he asked Potgieter to come to see to his cattle, 
which were in Mapela's charge, the latter receiving 
the milk of the cows in return for his trouble : an ar- 
rangement which had been made at Mapela's request. 
On receiving this message from Mapela, Potgieter 
set out with his son Andries, a few burghers and his 
colored groom. When they arrived at Mapela's, the 
wagons were, as usual, deposited in the Kaffir town. 
At first, the Kaffirs were very friendly in their con- 
versation with Potgieter and his companions, and 
described to him the place where the elephants were 
to be found. Suddenly, however, they fell upon the 
whole company, killed Potgieter's son and compan- 
ions and dragged Potgieter himself to the top of 
a hill, where, shouting and dancing for joy, they 
skinned him alive in the presence of his groom. The 
poor man was not released from his sufferings until 
his murderers had torn the entrails from his body. 
The groom, who was allowed to go free, afterwards 
showed me the spot where this butchery had taken 
place. 

While Mapela was engaged in this horrible busi- 
ness, Makapaan, in a time of peace, when nobody 
suspected any harm or danger, suddenly attacked 
a number of women and children who were quietly 
traveling from Zoutpansberg to Pretoria. The two 
chiefs had arranged that they would between them 
murder all the white people in their respective dis- 

43 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

tricts. When these foul deeds became known, it was 
decided that the Kaffir chiefs should be punished. 

General Piet Potgieter, the nephew of the so 
cruelly murdered Herman Potgieter, set out with 
100 men from Zoutpansberg to avenge the murder. 
At the same time. Commandant General Pretorius 
left Pretoria, with 200 men, on the same errand. I 
was second in command of the latter's commando. 
Before these two commandos had united, the Kaffirs 
made a night attack on Potgieter's laager, but were 
fortunately repelled. After the two commandos had 
joined forces, the Kaffirs were driven back into their 
mountains, where they hid in caves and ravines. The 
joint commandos kept them imprisoned in these caves 
in order to starve them into surrender. 

After the Kaffirs had been besieged for some time 
and suffered greatly from famine, without our get- 
ting any nearer to effecting our object, I endea- 
vored to end the matter and bring about a surrender 
by stratagem. With this object in view, I crept in 
the dark, unseen, into the cave where the Kaffirs lay 
hidden. I sat down among them and began to talk 
to them in their own language, as though I were one 
of themselves, and suggested that it would surely 
be better to surrender than die of hunger. I also said 
that I was certain that the white men would not kill 
us, and offered myself to go to the white men to 

44 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

treat with them. Suddenly an armed Kaffir ex- 
claimed : 

'' Magoa! " (White man !) 

But this dangerous moment also passed, for, when 
the Kaffir shouted " Magoal" all the others fled 
deeper into the cave, and I jumped up and ran after 
them, right into the back of the cave. The Kaffirs 
now began to hunt for the white man, looking for 
him in every direction, except where he was, in their 
very midst. When they had quieted down a little, 
I once more addressed them in their own language, 
and urged them to surrender. Finally, I succeeded 
in bringing 170 or 180 women and children out of 
the cave, and it was not until I was outside that they 
perceived that it was I and not a Kaffir who had 
been talking to them. My intention had really been 
to efl*ect a voluntary surrender of the Kaffirs, and 
thus to get hold of their guilty captains. But I was 
unable to attain this object and we had to continue 
the siege. 

Commandant General Pretorius was very angry 
at my imprudence, punished me severely for ven- 
turing to go alone among the Kaffirs in their caves, 
and ordered me away from the caves. Before the 
siege was over, I had one more narrow escape from 
death. In one of the fights. Commandant General 
Potgieter was hit by a shot fired from a crevice in the 

45 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

rocks. He was standing close to the edge of a rocky 
wall, giving directions to his Kaffir, when the fatal 
shot struck him. Potgieter fell down into the midst of 
a Kaffir trench. I saw this happen, and rushed down 
at once to try at least to save the body. The Kaffirs 
aimed a furious fire at me from the loop-holes in their 
entrenchments, but the burghers answered the fire 
no less heartily ; and I was able to leap over the wall 
of the entrenchment, to lift the body over the wall, 
leap back, protected by the smoke of the powder, 
and bring the body safely back with me. Pot- 
gieter was a big, heavy man, and I had to exert 
all my strength to carry my dead friend back to 
his people. 

One of the Kaffirs who had been captured said 
that he could show us some hidden caves where ele- 
phants' tusks lay in heaps. Pretorius sent me with 
this Kaffir to fetch the tusks. While on this expe- 
dition, I came upon a number of blood-stained gar- 
ments which had belonged to the women and chil- 
dren murdered by the Kaffirs, as well as remains of 
portions of human bodies which the Kaffirs had 
roasted on the spit: roasted shoulders, arms, etc. 
The Kaffir who was to show me where the tusks were 
hidden also wore clothes which had clearly belonged 
to murdered white men. When at last we reached 
the cave where the ivory was supposed to be, the 
Kaffir tried to escape, and it cost me a great effort 

46 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

to recapture him. The elephants' tusks were a mere 
cheat. 

Soon after this, the resistance of Makapaan's 
men came to an end. It had been found impossible 
to induce them to leave their caves, and they had shot 
every one who approached. There was therefore 
nothing for it but to starve them out. Many hun- 
dreds died of hunger. A small portion of them es- 
caped through underground passages into the moun- 
tains. Several were captured and brought before 
the court-martial. I was out hunting at the time, 
and before I came back they had all been shot under 
martial law. It was absolutely necessary to shoot 
these cannibals, especially as none of the culprits 
were delivered up and the chief had disappeared. 
The children of the tribe, as soon as they fell into 
the hands of the Boers, were ingehoeht, that is to 
say, portioned out among Boer families and kept 
under strict legal supervision until they came of age. 

The commando now tm^ned its attention to Ma- 
pela, Makapaan's ally. I did not join this expedi- 
tion at first. Commandant General Pretorius sent 
me with a small commando to Maraba's town, where 
we had heard that a large number of Makapaan's 
cattle had been stored. I was to look into this mat- 
ter and attack Maraba's town if it offered any re- 
sistance. But I met with none. Some of the Kaffirs 
fled, and the remainder surrendered. The latter de- 

47 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

clared that they had some of Makapaan's cattle, that 
they had never shared in his crimes, and that they 
were quite willing to restore such of his stolen cattle 
as were in their possession. This was done, but only 
a thousand head were discovered. As soon as I had 
possession of the cattle, I returned, leaving Maraba's 
Kaffirs unharmed. I reached the other commandos 
in time to join them on their march against Mapela. 
But Mapela's Kaffirs had also fled for the greater 
part, so that there was practically nothing to do. A 
few wagons, some chests, and other things which had 
belonged to the murdered whites were discovered on 
a kop near Mapela's town. These goods the com- 
mandos carried back with them. 

Mapela's punishment was not efl*ected until many 
years later, in 1858. Meanwhile, he had committed 
several other outrages ; and it had also become neces- 
sary to take away the fire-arms which he had man- 
aged to obtain. A commando under General Schoe- 
man, with myself as assistant general, set out against 
him. But Mapela had entrenched himself on the 
summit of a high kop, consisting of sheer rocky walls 
on every side. I called for volunteers to storm this 
fortress, and about 100 men came forward. With 
these, I went in the night, unseen, to the foot of the 
mountain. The commando now took ofi" their veld- 
schoen, so as noiselessly to climb the steep gorge that 
formed the only way to the top, and thus surprise 

48 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

the Kaffirs. I went first with a patrol, and had got 
half-way up the mountain when we were discovered. 
A sentry allowed me to come up quite close to him, 
and then fired. Fortunately the gun refused. I 
did not notice the man until I heard the click of the 
trigger; I aimed and shot him dead at my feet. 
Thereupon the Kaffirs who held the gorge began to 
fire from every side. My gun-carrier fell. I my- 
self ran back as fast as I could to my comrades. 

" Forwards ! " I shouted. " On with your veld- 
schoen, and have at them without mercy! " 

So the pass was seized and we took up our posi- 
tions on the top until daybreak. The Kaffirs had 
retired still further, but charged when they caught 
sight of the first group of burghers, consisting of 
about 15 men, preparing for the attack. By the 
time, however, that they were still fifty paces off, 
this handful of burghers had been reinforced and 
now numbered about 100 men. Our fire mowed 
down the blacks in rows, and they rushed away in 
wild flight. From the rocky plateau, another road, 
or rather a ladder of trees, led down to the further 
side. Here the fugitives flung themselves down, 
and more were killed in this way than fell in the 
actual battle. The trees were hung with dead men, 
for all was thick forest below. Mapela himself 
escaped. 

I had hardly returned from the first unsuccess- 
* 49 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ful expedition against Mapela when, in December 
1853, I had again to go on commando, this time 
against the chief Montsioa, who lived on the Tiooge- 
veld between Schoonspruit and Marico, on the 
Harts River. This chief had taken advantage of the 
very severe weather, accompanied by a heavy fall of 
snow, to steal a large nmnber of cattle from the 
Boers, and had, at the same time, murdered one of 
the cattle-owners and then fled to Setlagoli in Brit- 
ish Bechuanaland. When the Boer commando 
which had been sent against him reached the neigh- 
borhood of Setlagoli, it suddenly found itself in the 
midst of an enormous swarm of locusts. The Kaffirs 
had also seen this swarm, and when they saw the dust 
raised by the approaching commandos, they thought 
it was the locusts, and allowed the enemy to ap- 
proach their town without preparing to receive him. 
When the commando was close to the town, Com- 
mandant General Pretorius sent me ^ to the captain 
to explain why the commando had come, and to de- 
mand that Montsioa should come out to justify 
himself. The captain, however, was not in the town, 
and I had to go on to the capital ; and, before I had 
reached it, the Kaffirs suddenly attacked me and my 
escort. I was some distance in front of the others, 
and my position was most critical. My horse was 

1 Kruger was a commandant, but, in this case, acted as an adjutant to the 
general. — Note hy the Editor of the Oerman Edition. 

50 



PUBLIC ACTIVITY 

quite exhausted. Flight was out of the question. 
I rode on at a walking-pace, so as not to attract the 
attention of the Kaffirs. When the foremost Kaffirs 
were quite close to me, four burghers came hurrying 
up, and this first drew the Kaffirs' attention to my 
person, and they turned against me. I now forced 
my horse into one last gallop and charged the 
Kaffirs, to make them think that my horse was still 
in good condition. This stratagem succeeded; the 
Kaffirs turned and fled, and I and my four com- 
panions got safely away. I took my exhausted 
horse back to the other cattle belonging to the com- 
mando, and proposed to go on foot, with the others, 
against the Kaffirs. Commandant Schutte tried to 
persuade me to relinquish this plan, as, being on 
foot, the Kaffirs might easily take me prisoner; but 
I replied: 

" Most of the Kaffirs are on foot too, and, if it 
comes to running, the Kaffirs will not catch me 
easily." 

When Schutte saw that I was not to be persuaded, 
he told his groom to give me his horse and return to 
camp. So I rode on to the battle. The Kaffirs num- 
bered about 500, while the burghers who had gone on 
ahead to oppose them were only 40 men in all, and 
of these a few had remained behind with the wagons 
and the cattle. Our small band, however, man- 
aged to cause the Kaffirs considerable loss and to 

51 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

put them to flight. Our losses were only a few 
wounded. 

The commando also succeeded in recapturing the 
cattle. With the cattle were several Kafiir boys, 
who were sent back to their town by the general that 
same evening, under my protection. I was also in- 
structed to tell the chief that the Boers had not come 
to fight him, but only to fetch the stolen cattle, and 
that we would come the next day to negotiate about 
this. I went close up to the town, set the boys free 
and returned to camp. The released captives deliv- 
ered their message correctly, but it never came to 
negotiations, for the chief fled that same night. We 
did not pursue him, but returned to our farms with 
the cattle which we had recovered. 



52 



CHAPTER III 
IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 



CHAPTER III 

IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

The first Basuto War — Kruger assists the Orange Free State 
against the Basutos and negotiates the peace with Moshesh — 
Kruger as general in the field against the Kaffir chief Gasi- 
bone. 

AFTER our return from the expedition against 
^ Montsioa, Commandant General A. W. J. 
Pretorius fell seriously ill. When he realized that 
the end was at hand, he sent for me, but I had just 
gone on a hunting expedition in the Rustenburg dis- 
trict, and the messengers, unfortunately, did not 
reach me in time, so that, when I returned, I found 
that this great leader of the emigrants had passed 
away. This was most deplorable, for who knows 
what he might still have wished to discuss in his last 
moments. On the return journey from Montsioa's 
town, he had talked much to me on religious matters, 
and he might have had more to say to me on this 
subject. 

A few days after his death, a letter arrived, ad- 
dressed to the deceased, from the British Commis- 
sioners, Owen and Hogge,^ in which Pretorius was 

^ These were the special commissioners who had been appointed by the 
Queen of England to settle relations on the eastern and northeastern 

55 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

requested to take over the Orange Free State from 
the British Government on behalf of the emigrants. 
But that was now impossible, and the assumption of 
the government of the country of the Orange Free 
State from the hands of the English was now ef- 
fected by Messrs. Venter, BoshofF and a few other 
burghers of the Free State. This, afterwards, led to 
serious differences between the younger Pretorius 
and the Orange Free State, for the communication 
was to the effect that the Free State should be trans- 
ferred to Commandant General Pretorius and the 
emigrants. Young Pretorius, like many other bur- 
ghers, was of opinion that the land had been handed 
over to his father and therefore to himself as his suc- 
cessor. The question led almost to civil war between 
the Free State and the South African Republic. 

Marthinus Wessel Pretorius, the eldest son of the 
deceased Pretorius, was appointed Commandant 
General of the South African Republic in his 
father's stead, and, after a law had been passed pro- 
viding for a president, he was also elected to the office 
a few years later. This title, however, did not then 
mean that he was president of the Republic, for the 
new statute was not universally recognized. He was 
merely president of the Government which he repre- 

frontiers of the Cape of Good Hope, and who made the agreement with 
the Boer emigrants by which both the Free State and the South African 
Republic obtained their independence. — Note hy the Editor of the Oerman 
Edition. 

56 



IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

sented. He now began to put forward his pretended 
claims on the Free State, and, in 1857, issued a call 
to arms, because he was offended that his claims had 
been rejected. I was away on business, but was asked 
to return at once. I disapproved most strongly of the 
conduct of Pretorius, whom I found encamped with 
his troops on the Vaal River, and I told him very 
plainly what I thought. But, when I heard that the 
President of the Free State had made an agreement 
with Commandant General Schoeman, in the north 
of the Transvaal, which was that part of the country 
where the new law was not yet acknowledged, that 
the latter should come to the Free State's assistance 
I advised prompt action and that we should attack 
Boshoff without delay. We crossed the river to meet 
Boshoff, who was advancing with a large commando. 
When the opponents were close to one another, 
Boshoff sent one of his officers with proposals for a 
peaceful settlement. Pretorius was much in favor 
of this; nor were his men at all in a warlike mood. 
When the adversaries' messenger arrived, they were 
practising buck- jumping, so that the officer ex- 
claimed in astonishment: 

" Do they hold us so lightly? " 

Pretorius sent me as negotiator ; and I told Boshoff 
my opinion just as openly as I had told it to Pre- 
torius : 

" You are quite as guilty as your adversary," I 

57 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

said. " Why do you take up arms, instead of im- 
peaching Pretorius hefore the Volksraad? He would 
certainly have been punished." 

Koos Venter, a big, strong man, who was standing 
by, began to rage against Pretorius, and kept on 
shouting: 

" If I only had him here, I would wring his neck 
for him hke a bird's." 

At last my blood was up too, and I said : 

" Mr. BoshofF, the matter can easily be settled. 
Let Koos take oiF his coat and I will take off mine, 
and we wiU fight it out. If he is beaten, you must 
submit to our conditions, and if he beats me, it will 
be the other way about." 

But Venter would have none of this; he had no 
grudge against me, he argued. But I said : 

" That has nothing to do with it. You stand up 
for your President and I for mine." 

However, there was no duel, but Venter kept quiet 
after that, and a commission was appointed to meet 
on the Vaal River to settle the diif erence. Here, al- 
though I did not at all approve of it, I was called 
upon to defend the action of my President, who was 
himself violently attacked. In the end a compro- 
mise was arrived at, and Pretorius rehnquished his 
imjust claims. 

It was agreed in the contract that each section of 
the Boers should have the right to punish oiFenders 

58 



IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

in its own country. Now, however, two burghers 
who had sided with Pretorius in the Free State were 
charged with high treason and condemned to die on 
the gallows. Once again I had to go to act as me- 
diator: 

" Why do you again break the compact? " I asked 
Boshoff. 

" We break the compact? What do you mean? " 
he retorted. 

" Well, are you not going to hang two of your 
people? " 

" Yes, we have the right to do so : it says so in the 
agreement." 

" Nothing of the sort. You have the right to pun- 
ish certainly ; but * punish ' means to ' chastise,' to 
admonish, to warn, and to correct by means of the 
chastisement." 

And, when Boshoff would not allow this, I fetched 
a Bible and showed him that the Holy Writ dis- 
tinguished between punishing and chastising. We 
may chastise a man with the prospect of death, but 
we may not kill him in order to punish him. The 
Free Staters gave in after this, and so the matter was 
jBnally settled. 

Shortly afterwards, I had the opportunity of ren- 
dering the Free State a service. Ever since the De- 
claration of Independence, they had had difficulties 
with Moshesh, and these difficulties at last led to open 

59 



THE MEMOIKS OF PAUL KRUGER 

war between Moshesh and the Free State. Moshesh 
was no contemptible adversary, and he had a large 
force at his command. His bands were continually 
making plmidering inroads into the southern portion 
of the Orange Free State, and, when this came to 
my knowledge, I decided to go to the Free State and 
offer my services to the Government. President 
Pretorius accompanied me with about 50 men, under 
Field-cornet Bodenstein. At Osspruit, on the Upper 
Sand River, we came upon the first camp of the Free 
Staters. That same night, the Kaffirs robbed the 
herds of this camp. I sent Field-cornet Bodenstein 
with his men in pursuit, and they succeeded in regain- 
ing the cattle. From here we marched on by Win- 
burg to Bloemfontein. 

On our arrival, I offered myself to go to Mo- 
shesh to negotiate a peace. The Free State Govern- 
ment accepted my offer and gave me General Fick 
and Marthinus Schoeman as an escort. Moshesh 
lived on Thaba Bosigo Mountain. When we came 
to the foot of the mountain, I sent up a message to 
Moshesh that we had not come to fight him, but that 
I wanted to talk to him about peace. Moshesh sent 
back word : 

" I will come down directly to speak with Mr. 
Kruger." 

I was not disposed to wait, however, and at once 
climbed the mountain so as to go straight to Mo- 

60 



IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

shesh's town. When we reached the top, Moshesh was 
just coming to meet us. Magato, the KafRr captain 
from the Rustenburg neighborhood, whom we knew 
and who happened to be with Moshesh, introduced 
me to him, saying : 

" This is Paul Kruger." 

Moshesh gave me his hand, and said : 

"Is that Paul Kruger? How is it possible? I 
have heard tell of him for so many years, and 
now I am so old. How, then, can he still be so 
young? " 

He took hold of my arm and led me to his house 
and into a room which no black dared enter, but 
which was always ready for the reception of white 
men. 

After taking some refreshments, we at once pro- 
ceeded to business. I began : 

" Why do you kill one another for such a trifle? 
Why not, rather, arrange the matter amicably? You 
must surely see that war does you damage and makes 
you block the highroads for other nations with whom 
you are living at peace." 

After much argument on both sides, Moshesh said 
at last : 

" What you say is true, for everything I want in 
this house I have to buy from other nations. And, 
when the roads are blocked by war, of course I can 
get nothing." Then, changing the subject, " Are 

61 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

you the man," he asked, " who fetched Mapela down 
from his momitain? " ^ 

I said : 

" Yes." 

Then Moshesh proceeded: 

" Are you aware that two of my daughters were 
married to Mapela? " adding, after a moment's si- 
lence, " You need not think that it was your courage 
that brought Mapela down from his mountain, but 
it was the dispensation of God that punished Mapela 
for committing so foul a miu'der." 

Now, as Moshesh was at every moment speaking 
of the dispensation of God and using pious words, 
I said to him : 

" But if you are so devout, how do you come to 
have more than one wife? " 

Moshesh replied: 

" Yes, I have just about two hundred ; but that 
is not half so many as Solomon had." 

To which I made answer: 

" Yes, but you surely know that, since Christ's 
time and according to the New Testament, a man 
may have only one wife." 

Moshesh reflected for a moment and then said : 

" Well, what shall I say to you . . . it is just 
nature." 

^The trial of Mapela had just taken place. — Note hy the Editor of the 
Oerman Edition. 

62 



IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

In the evening, I sent for Moshesh again to come 
to me. Moshesh came, but this time dressed hke an 
ordinary KaflSr, that is, not in European clothes. 
When he came in, I called to him : 

" Why is Moshesh so long coming? Can't he come 
when I send for him? " 

Moshesh answered: 

" I am Moshesh." 

" Oh," said I. " Are you Moshesh? Then why 
are you dressed hke a woman? " 

Moshesh laughed heartily. 

That same evening, we made an agreement that 
the war was to stop at once. Moshesh agreed to call 
in his Kafiirs as soon as he received word that the 
Orange Free State had accepted the terms. A peace 
document was drawn up, and signed the following 
morning. 

Moshesh then invited me to stay with him a little 
longer, as he wanted to pick me out a fine saddle- 
horse. I accepted the invitation, but my companions 
Fick and Schoeman did not care to wait any longer 
and went back alone. Moshesh then brought me an 
excellent saddle-horse as a present. The Govern- 
ment of the Orange Free State afterwards accepted 
the treaty drafted by Moshesh and myself, and this 
brought the first Basuto War to an end. 

Before leaving Moshesh's town, I received a mes- 
sage from President Pretorius asking me to return 

63 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

at once and set out as general or, rather, assistant 
general, with a commando, against Gasibone, a Kaf- 
fir chief on the Harts River. This chief had stolen 
the white men's cattle, killed some of the men and 
carried oif an old woman and a girl of eighteen. On 
receipt of this message, I at once jimiped on my 
horse and rode to my home in the Magaliesberg, in 
the Rustenburg district. In three days, I spent over 
fifty hours on horseback. The commando had mean- 
time assembled and was waiting for me near Klerks- 
dorp, where I joined it after spending one day at my 
farm. On reaching the meeting-place, I found that 
the burghers had hardly any ammunition and no cat- 
tle for food. But we set out, nevertheless, in the 
hope of being able, on the way, to procure both from 
private sources. I also sent a message to the Orange 
Free State requesting them to provide us with what 
was necessary. But I did not obtain much here, as 
I had no money and had to buy on the promise of 
future payment. Om* shortness of ammunition was 
such that we could not shoot any game, but I never- 
theless devised a means of providing meat for my 
commando, by instructing the burghers to surround 
the game, drive it into the bends of the Vaal River 
and there kill it by beating it with sticks. 

The whole commando was about 200 strong. When 
we approached Gasibone's place. Commandant Piet 
Venter came to our support from the Orange Free 

64 



IN A POSITION OF COMMAND 

State with about 100 men, white and colored. It 
soon became evident that Gasibone had taken refuge 
with one of his subordinates, called Mahura, who 
lived in a mountain fastness, filled with ravines, fur- 
ther up the Harts River Gorge. I sent word to 
Mahura that I was coming in pursuit of Gasibone 
and that I should keep to the south side of the Harts 
River, also that Mahura was not to interfere with 
Gasibone, unless he was prepared to capture him and 
deliver him up. On receiving this message, jMahura, 
with the assistance of an interpreter, set free the old 
woman and the young girl who had been carried off 
by Gasibone. When our commando came to within 
a few thousand paces of the place where we knew 
Gasibone's camp to be, the two chiefs attacked us 
with united forces. We defeated them, and they fled 
into the caves and rocks with which the place 
abounded. The following morning, the commando 
attacked them there and hunted them out of their 
hiding-places. Gasibone fled in the night in the di- 
rection of British Bechuanaland, but, on the follow- 
ing day, he was found in the brushwood by a patrol, 
and fell after a sharp fight. Part of the men with 
him were taken prisoners, but afterwards released. 

Meanwhile, the missionary who was with Mahura 

wrote to me on his behalf to say that he had done 

wrong in helping Gasibone, that he deserved to be 

punished, but begged for forgiveness and was willing 

5 65 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

to submit. I sent back word that I would gladly for- 
give him all, but that he must come to me to receive 
instructions as to his subsequent behavior. Mahura, 
however, did not come personally, on the pretence 
that he was too ill to travel, but sent one of his cap- 
tains. I nevertheless appointed him chief of that 
particular Kaffir tribe, in Gasibone's place. The cat- 
tle which Gasibone had stolen were restored forth- 
with. Then the commando returned home again. 
For me it had been a year of hard work. 



66 



CHAPTER IV 
THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 



CHAPTER IV 

THE CIVIL war: 1861-1864 

Kruger's protest against the violation of the Constitution by 
Commandant General Schoeman — Assembly of the people at 
Pretoria — Kruger's declaration of war — ^Attempts at a settle- 
ment and their frustration by Schoeman — Kruger by an act 
of the Reformed Church is qualified to hold office in the 
State — Fresh negotiations — Military preparations on both 
sides — The political contest develops into a religious war — 
Battle of Potchefstroom — Schoeman's flight — Renewed nego- 
tiations — The arbitration award of the Supreme Court re- 
jected — Kruger insulted — Battle of Zwartkopje — Fresh ne- 
gotiations — Mutual amnesty — The new elections — Kruger 
again Commandant General. 

IN the year 1860, Pretorius visited the Orange 
Free State to settle public affairs there. He had 
become State President of the Republic two years 
previously, after the acceptation of the constitution, 
and now, on the retirement of President Boshoff, 
was also elected President of the Orange Free State. 
He owed his election to the Unionist Party there, 
since his chief aim was to amalgamate the two Re- 
publics. On attaining the second presidency, he was 
granted leave of absence for six months by the Volks- 
raad of the South African Republic, of which he was 

69 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

also President, for the purpose of visiting the Free 
State. He probably expected to be able, within that 
time, to accomplish the union which he so much de- 
sired. During the President's absence, in accordance 
with an earlier resolution of the Volksraad, the oldest 
unofficial^ member of the Executive Raad became 
Acting President of the South African Republic. 
In this case, the office fell to Johannes Grobler. He 
was associated, as the law required, with another 
member unconnected with the Government, and these 
two, together with the Commandant General, com- 
posed the Executive Raad. Towards the end of 
1860, the Volksraad passed a resolution that the State 
President should hold no other office. Therefore 
Pretorius, who refused to renounce the Presidency 
of the Orange Free State, resigned that of the South 
African Republic. 

But, when Grobler assumed the office of Acting 
President, Schoeman, the Commandant General,^ 
opposed him, declaring that the post should have been 
his. He held public meetings to get this power trans- 
ferred to himself and to obtain a vote of censure on 
the Volksraad. Finally, he summoned all the mili- 
tary officers to Pretoria, and, having assembled them, 

1 The official members were the President, the State Secretary and the 
Commandant General. The two others were non-official, or auxiliary 
members, whose presence was not required at every sitting. — Note hy the 
Editor of the German Edition. 

2 After the Constitution had been accepted, there was as yet only one 
Commandant General. — Note hy the Editor of tha German Edition. 

70 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

proposed to abolish the Volksraad and to confer 
legislative power on the Executive Raad. I, with 
some other officers, protested against this proposal, 
on the ground that it ran counter to the constitution, 
and eventually won over the majority of the officers 
to my view. But this did not in the least disturb 
General Schoeman. He went to the Government 
Office and demanded of Grobler the papers and 
documents belonging to the Government. Grobler 
offered strong opposition, but was finally forced to 
retire. I now proposed that a general public meet- 
ing should be summoned for the purpose of deciding 
the matter, and this proposal was also accepted by 
Schoeman's party. His supporters, however, came 
to the meeting armed, while their leader had, in the 
meantime, on his own responsibility, appointed a 
certain Johannes Steyn to be Commandant General. 
Neither I nor my adherents, of course, carried arms. 
I had no idea that the other side intended to bring 
weapons, but, even if I had known of their intention, 
I should still have gone unarmed with my men, for 
party feeling ran so high that a hand-to-hand en- 
counter might easily have ensued, which would have 
led to civil war. 

When I had gone as far as Daspoort, on my way 
to Pretoria, I received an order from General Schoe- 
man to advance no further, but to remain where I 
was. I replied that I would certainly not turn back 

71 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

before reaching Pretoria, having once accepted an 
invitation to attend the meeting. As a matter of 
fact, I rode into the town and went at once to Schoe- 
man's house. I asked him how it was that he wished 
to hinder my coming to Pretoria, although he had 
himself agreed to the plan of summoning a general 
meeting, to which all burghers were invited. I added 
that this meeting was the sole object of my visit. 
Now, just as I entered, a council of war happened to 
be taking place in Schoeman's house, under the pres- 
idency of Steyn, whom Schoeman had appointed 
Commandant General. As soon as he saw me, Steyn 
said: 

" You must give in with a good grace. It 's the 
best you can do." 

I made him no answer, but turned to Schoeman 
and reproached him for having come armed to the 
meeting with his followers, while the other side had 
refrained from doing so. After I had spoken my 
mind plainly, I told him that I would inspan at once 
and return home with my burghers. But, when I 
turned to leave the room, some of Steyn's officers 
tried to seize me, while others signified their disap- 
proval of such treatment and prevented my arrest. 
After I had left the house, Steyn ordered a gun, 
loaded with shrapnel, to be pointed at the laager of 
the opposition party and threatened to shoot unless 
a certain Jeppe were handed over to him. This 

73 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

Jeppe was at that time the only printer in the Repub- 
hc. His printing-press was at Potchefstroom, and 
Schoeman's party wished to have proclamations 
printed so that they might be quickly distributed and 
thus influence the burghers. I, of course, refused to 
grant this request; but the threat of Steyn's people, 
that they would open fire, made such an impression 
on Jeppe, who was standing behind me, that he 
rushed forward and gave himself up to the other side. 
I now inspanned to return to Rustenburg. I cried 
out at parting to Schoeman's men : 

" Once I have crossed the Magaliesberg, you must 
look on me as an enemy." 

Just as our wagons were moving away, President 
Pretorius arrived at Pretoria on his return journej'- 
from the Orange Free State and at once rode up to 
our wagons with a number of Schoeman's men, in 
order to speak to me and induce me to go no further. 
Schoeman's followers now declared that they would 
sooner throw away their guns than allow them to be 
a cause of strife. They were also willing that I 
should make a proposal to be submitted to the vote 
of the Volksraad. I therefore outspanned again and 
suggested that Pretorius, Proes the State Attorney, 
and myself should elaborate a proposal. This met 
with universal assent. At a meeting of us three men, 
it was agreed that a commission should be appointed 
to summon the Volksraad, which should then decide 

73 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

who had acted rightly and who wrongly. The pub- 
lic meeting endorsed this suggestion and at once ap- 
pointed a commission with Stephanus Lombard as 
president. The commissioners now entrusted three 
members of the Volksraad, including the president. 
Christian Klopper, with the task of summoning that 
assembly. Thus, at length, a properly-convened 
Volksraad met, declared, after thorough investiga- 
tion, that Schoeman was guilty of breaking the law, 
and deposed him from the office of Commandant 
General. The Volksraad resolved further that a 
special court should settle all the resulting points 
of dispute. It nominated W. van Rensburg as act- 
ing State President, and Theunis Snyman as Com- 
mandant General. When, however, the special court 
sat to deal with these matters, Schoeman violently 
put an end to its proceedings. 

I had returned home after the session of the Volks- 
raad and happened to be on a hunting expedition 
on the Crocodile River, when the new complications 
arose. Messengers were sent to recall me. Now 
during the recent disputes many members of the 
Hervormde Church had reproached me with having 
no right whatever to meddle in public aiFairs. Ac- 
cording to the constitution of the Republic, the Her- 
vormde Church was the state church. Its members 
alone were entitled to exercise any influence in public 
affairs. Whoever was not a member of the Her- 

74 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

vormde Church was not a fuUy-quahfied burgher. 
Now I belonged to the Christelijk-Gereformeerde 
Church, recently founded, in 1859, by Dr. Postma, 
at Rustenburg. It is generally known in South 
Africa as the JDopper, or Canting Church. The ac- 
tual derivation of the word Dopper cannot be stated 
with certainty. At that time, it was derived from the 
word dop^ a damper or extinguisher for putting out 
candles. The meaning would seem to be that, just 
as a dop extinguishes a candle, so the Doppers ex- 
tinguished all new thoughts and opposed all progress. 
As for the peculiar tenets of the Dopper Church, 
they consist in a strict adhesion to the decrees of the 
Synod of Dordrecht, of 1618 to 1619, and share the 
point of view of the Old Reformed Church. The 
service differs from that of the other Evangelical 
bodies in this particular, that no hymns except psalms 
are sung by the worshipers. The members of this 
Church were not recognized by the constitution, for, 
when it was drafted, they did not form an indepen- 
dent community. 

Now when I was asked to give help in these fresh 
difficulties, I repHed that people must put up with 
Schoeman's conduct. At any rate, I could not do or 
suggest anything, for I had no pohtical standing. 
As a result of this, Acting President van Rensburg, 
who had been put in office by my party, caused a 
meeting to be called of the Council of the Hervormde 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Church, which passed a resolution conferring equal 
rights on the burghers of all Evangelical churches. 
As soon as I heard of this resolution, which was sub- 
sequently confirmed by the Volksraad, I rode to Pre- 
toria, where I found President van Rensburg with 
a portion of his followers and also Schoeman with 
a number of his adherents. 

The two parties were on hostile terms. I went at 
once to Schoeman's people, with the intention of per- 
suading them to come to a peaceful understanding. 
I suggested that a meeting should be summoned of 
burghers from every part of the Republic and that 
all should acquiesce in whatever resolution the ma- 
jority of the meeting might adopt. Both parties 
agreed to this proposal, and a meeting was called at 
Pretoria. Hither came a mass of burghers from all 
parts of the Republic, and it was resolved, by a large 
majority, to carry out the proposal which had been al- 
ready accepted by the Volksraad : namely, that a spe- 
cial court should settle each separate question. But 
Schoeman resisted this proposal and called up all his 
men, who were still outside Pretoria, to rally round 
him. Thereupon van Rensburg, in his turn, ordered 
Commandant General Snyman to call a council of 
war and at once posted sentries to prevent Schoe- 
man from sending out any more messages. 

Pickets were now stationed at various points 
around Pretoria — a particularly strong one at 

76 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

Aapjes River, where the suburb of Arcadia is now 
situated. The veteran Jacob Malan was in command 
of this post. He notified the Commandant General, 
on the following day, that his presence there was su- 
perfluous, as Schoeman's messengers easily made 
their way through the pickets and rode people down, 
if they did not get out of the way. Snyman then 
gave orders, that, if one of Schoeman's messengers 
should again come and refuse to halt when the chal- 
lenge to do so was repeated, the watch must fire at 
his horse. Soon after this order was issued, a mes- 
senger came riding at full speed and paid no heed 
to the injunction to halt. The outpost thereupon 
shot the horse with a charge of large shot. The mes- 
senger turned, but as he was turning, his horse 
dropped. He himself was wounded by a shot in the 
arm. Thus was the first shot fired that began the 
Civil War. 

On the same evening, the Commandant General, 
in cc»i junction with the military ofi[icers, issued an 
order that all burghers must assemble in the town in 
order to surround Schoeman and take him prisoner 
on the following day. But, dui'ing the night, Schoe- 
man found a way of breaking through with his men 
as far as Potchefstroom. All who remained behind 
were visited with punishment by the Council of War. 
Schoeman then mustered a commando at Potchef- 
stroom, to which spot General Snyman's commando 

77 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

now hastened. The Acting President and myself 
accompanied Snyman. 

Schoeman's party now spread a report that I, 
Paul Kruger, was out with my men on commando 
to compel the recognition of my own church, 
the Christelijk-Gereformeerde Church, as the state 
church, instead of the Hervormde denomination. 
These rumors occasioned many to join Schoeman's 
side. Even in the district of Marico, he obtained 
adherents, including Jan Viljoen, the commandant 
of that district. As soon as the Government's com- 
mando, numbering about 500 or 600 men, reached 
Potchef stroom. President van Rensburg sent a mes- 
sage to Schoeman with a proposal that a joint com- 
mission should be appointed from both sides to find 
a way out of their difficulties. Schoeman agreed to 
this proposal, and appointed, on his side, Jan Kock, 
the father of General Kock, who fell in the late war, 
together with other burghers, to serve on the com- 
mission, while I, together with some others, was en- 
trusted with the conduct of the peace negotiations by 
the Government party. The delegates met half-way 
between the two camps. Scarcely had we met, when 
Jan Kock said to me : 

" So you want to make your church the state 
church? " 

I answered quietly: 

" Oom Jan, I need not take much trouble to con- 

78 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

tradict you. If you think a little, you must see for 
yourself that such a statement must be untrue. Here 
is the Government's laager. The President and all 
the officers belong to the Hervormde Church, and 
I scarcely know whether, out of 500 or 600 men, 
as many as twenty belong to my church. There- 
fore what you say about the churches cannot be 
true." 

Afterwards I added: 

" I have never thought of making the church to 
which I belong the state church. Nay, even if you 
were to offer to make it so, I should decidedly refuse, 
for our principle declares that Christ and no other 
must be the Head of the Church." 

The commission was, however, unable to come to 
a decision, and the members separated without ac- 
complishing any result. 

On the following day. General Snyman sent me 
with a gun and a number of burghers to bombard 
the town from the south side. As soon as I arrived, 
I at once opened fire with the gun, and succeeded in 
disabling one of the enemy's guns with my third shot. 
General Schoeman replied from the town with artil- 
lery and rifle-fire. This duel of the guns lasted all 
day. On the following night, Schoeman, with his 
commando, quitted the town for a plateau on the 
northern side, in order thence to attack the Govern- 
ment party. But I had suspected Schoeman of this 

79 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

intention, and crept alone up the hills in order to ob- 
serve the enemy's movements. When, at daybreak, 
I saw Schoeman's commando approaching, I has- 
tened back to my men and gave them orders to get 
ready and follow me to the hills. That no time might 
be lost, I led the way with fifteen to twenty men, 
while the rest completed their preparations, and 
charged with them to within fifty or sixty paces of 
Schoeman's followers, who opened fire with shot and 
buUets. Of course, I and my men rephed, and the 
firing grew so fierce that neither party could see the 
other for the smoke and we were obliged to take aim 
by instinct. I had three wounded, while the other 
side had to lament the loss of one killed and about 
fifteen wounded. General Schoeman, who was 
slightly wounded himself, fled on the same day into 
the Orange Free State, but was pursued by us and lost 
yet a few more followers, whom we took prisoners. 
On his farm in the Orange Free State, his people 
rallied once more, and General Snyman took the 
necessary steps to have his opponents arrested there. 
The Government of the Orange Free State was 
asked if it would allow such arrests to take place on 
that ground and territory. It replied that it had 
no objection, and even sent Landdrost Truter, of 
Kroonstad, to assist in making the arrests. But 
Schoeman was too quick for them. He retreated in 
the night in the direction of Wakkerstroom, and 

80 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

once more rallied his commando on a farm at the 
j miction of the Klip Stream and Vaal River. 

The Government commando, which had at fii'st 
withdrawn rather to the north, on the assmnption that 
Schoeman would make for Pretoria, pursued him 
first to the farm I have mentioned, thence to Potchef - 
stroom, and fell in with his laager at the Mooi River 
between the Loop Stream and Potchef stroom. Just 
as fighting was about to begin, a small band of Schoe- 
man's people came up, among them being President 
Pretorius. He proposed that yet another commission 
should be appointed to settle our differences. The 
Government party agreed to this and laagered a few 
thousand paces above Schoeman's men, opposite 
Potchefstroom, on the Mooi River. The Govern- 
ment once more sent me with a few other burghers to 
serve on the commission, while Schoeman's party 
nominated President Pretorius and others. The 
place of meeting lay half-way between the laagers. 
I proposed that we should now definitely recognize 
the resolution of the Volksraad appointing van Rens- 
bui'g Acting President and entrusting the punish- 
ment of the guilty to a special tribunal. One of the 
most hotly-debated points in our discussion was, who 
should sit as judge of this tribunal? But at last this 
question, too, was decided, after a debate of many 
hours, in accordance with my ideas. I had proposed 
to establish the tribunal in exact conformity with the 
^ 81 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

requirements of the constitution. It was further 
resolved that President van Rensburg should sum- 
mon the special court w^ithout delay. The decisions 
of the commission were accepted by both commandos ; 
the members separated ; the war seemed at an end. 

President van Rensburg at once acted on this de- 
cision and summoned the special court. But, al- 
though the court was composed in equal parts of 
members drawn from both factions, the first case, 
which happened to be that of Andries du Toit, be- 
longing to the Schoeman party, was given against 
him. This was enough. The remaining members 
of the party rode away. The costs of the court, as 
well as those of the commando, were given against 
Schoeman's party, and a council of war was to be 
held, to which his officers were also to be invited. It 
so happened that I had meantime been elected Com- 
mandant General, and was charged by the Govern- 
ment with the task of collecting the costs of the com- 
mando from the opposite side and, at the same time, 
bringing the officers to the council of war. I sum- 
moned a meeting for this purpose in the Heidelberg 
district, where I met with a most friendly reception 
from the field-cornet of that district, named Roets, 
a member of the opposite faction. I also succeeded 
in collecting, by peaceful means, a portion of the 
fines imposed, and in inducing a number of the offi- 
cers opposed to me, including Commandant Jan 

82 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

Marais, to accompany me to Pretoria. On my way 
to the meeting at Heidelberg, a yomig Boer per- 
petually rode in front of me and annomiced that 
" Paul Kruger was coming." To this he invariably 
added that he would not advise him to come, as it 
would go badly with him. Now, since I traveled by 
night as well as by day, I overtook this young man 
and, on the following morning, turned back from 
a farm, which he was just going to visit. The young 
man came straight up to me and began to rattle off 
his usual speech. I let him finish his say and then 
said to him : 

" Young man, let me give you some good advice : 
do not repeat this foolish stuiF any longer! Your 
whole party has already been guilty of quite enough 
disobedience against the administrative authority." 

" Yes; but who are you, Oom? " asked the young 
man. 

" Paul Kruger," I replied. 

To hear these words and lay hold of his horse was 
for the young man the work of an instant. He trem- 
bled so violently in every limb that he could scarcely 
mount his horse. But, once he was in the saddle, he 
did not wait a moment. I tried at least to discover 
his name but could get no reply save a cry of terror, 
and then away he flew ! 

On my return from Heidelberg to Pretoria, I had 
a still more amusing experience. I was traveling 

83 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

with the ahove-mentioned Jan Marais to the farm of 
a certain Strydom in the Pretoria district. Mrs. 
Strydom knew Marais very well, and was aware that 
he belonged to Schoeman's party. But she did not 
know me, and thought I was one of his officers. Her 
husband had been summoned to serve as a magistrate 
in the local court, but had failed to appear, and had 
accordingly been condemned to pay a fine of £100, 
whereupon he had taken to flight. Mrs. Strydom 
told her visitors with complete unconcern that her 
husband had been obliged to fly from his house, be- 
cause " this Paul Kruger " had condemned him to 
pay a fine of <£lOO on account of his failure to preside 
in the local court. Of course this fine was not im- 
posed by me, but by the court itself. Yet she directed 
all her wrath upon " Kruger," and spoke without re- 
straint in a most unpleasant manner about the Gov- 
ermnent party and specially about myself, who, " so 
to speak, was the head of the party." After she had 
continued these tirades against myself and my party 
for about half an hom*, there arrived from Pretoria 
a certain Jan Bantjes, who was attached to the side 
of the Government. He saluted me, and, coming 
up, said: 

"What, you here too. General? Are you taking 
Marais as your prisoner? " 

" No," I answered, " he is going with me of his 
own free will to the council of war." 

84. 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

A light began to dawn on Mrs. Strydom, and her 
tongue was silenced by apprehension. In tones of 
earnest entreaty she said to me : 

" Oh, General, I did not know who you were. Do 
not be angry at what I have said. I am so nervous 
by nature that I always talk to people as they talk 
to me, to avoid all unpleasantness. I only speak like 
that when I think people belong to the other side ; but, 
if people of your party come, I speak quite differ- 
ently. I have the sum here, which my husband was 
iined. I can fetch it you, if the general will only 
take it." 

To this I, of course, replied that I had nothing to 
do with the money; neither could I take it, for the 
matter was one which concerned the court. But, 
from that moment until the time of my departure, 
Mrs. Strydom was more than amiable. 

The council of war in Pretoria passed oif with- 
out any noteworthy results. Shortly afterwards, I 
was instructed by President van Rensburg to go to 
the Orange Free State to settle the question of de- 
termining the boundary between the two States. 
When I reached Potchefstroom, I learned that Jan 
Viljoen, of Schoeman's party, the Commandant of 
Marico, was approaching with a commando to cap- 
ture me. I rode to meet him with my small escort 
to ask what he wanted. Some of my men, including 
Field-cornet Sarel ElofF, dashed forward to seize a 

85 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

kopje, which seemed to be Viljoen's objective, and 
succeeded in reaching it before Viljoen. When they 
had secured this advantage, they cried out to Vil- 
joen's men that they had no hostile intentions, but 
only desired a friendly conference. The others rode 
continually nearer, until they completely surrounded 
ElofF with his small band of comrades, whereupon 
they captured the whole company and rode off with 
them to their camp. When they were nearly oppo- 
site the place where I had remained with the rest of 
my men. Field-cornet Eloff suddenly put spurs to 
his horse and rode up to me. His guards of course 
set after him, as soon as they had recovered from 
their surprise, but they could not catch him on his 
good horse. The other prisoners were taken to the 
enemy's laager and afterwards declared that they 
had been threatened with all sorts of punishments, 
if I did not yield to the demands of Schoeman's 
party. They did not dare to make a prisoner of me, 
although I had only a few men with me. My camp 
had been surrounded, but it was impossible to sur- 
prise me, for I was prepared for everything. How- 
ever, considering their overwhelming superiority in 
numbers and in order to avoid injuring the prisoners, 
I had resolved, if it came to a fight, to avoid an en- 
counter. So I and Eloff determined to continue our 
journey to the Orange Free State, while the other 
burghers might better disperse to their homes. As 

86 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

a matter of fact, we arrived without hindrance at 
Buhrmann's farm, in the neighborhood of the Rhe- 
noster River, in the Orange Free State, while several 
more of our burghers were made prisoners on their 
way home by Viljoen's men. 

I was continually kept informed of the plans and 
intentions of Viljoen's commando by trusty messen- 
gers, and I made use of the same messengers to con- 
vey to the enemy the following intelligence. I al- 
lowed them to suppose that I never intended to return 
to the South African Republic, but should settle 
down in the Orange Free State, because there were 
so many disputes in the Transvaal. I even bought 
a farm in the Orange Free State, on condition of 
being allowed to give it back again, and sent for a 
team of oxen: nay, I even caused my family to pre- 
pare themselves for a trek, so as to make the news 
seem more probable. I had recourse to this strata- 
gem chiefly that I might set free my imprisoned bur- 
ghers. Shortly afterwards, I received a message that 
a large commando of the Opposition was on the waj^ 
to Pretoria for the purpose of attacking a Govern- 
ment commando encamped on the Crocodile River. 
A small portion of the hostile commando had re- 
mained at Potchefstroom to guard the prisoners. 
When I learned that the prisoners had been set free 
and were dispersed, and when, at the same time, a 
messenger from the Government party came to me 

87 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

to ask what my plans were, I resolved to return im- 
mediately and join the Government commando on 
the Crocodile River. Pretorius, who in the meantime 
had resigned the office of President of the Orange 
Free State, happened at this moment to be at Pot- 
chef stroom. I let him know that I would pay him a 
visit, if it were at all possible, but found no time to 
do so. I did, however, push on in the night to Stom- 
poorfontein Farm, in the Potchefstroom district, 
which belonged to Wolmarans, a member of the 
party. But I stayed there only about half an hour 
and journeyed on again to my farm, called Water- 
kloof, in the Rustenburg district, which I reached 
in the afternoon of the same day. Field-cornet Sarel 
Eloff, who had been with me the whole time, parted 
from me on the hoogeveld, and went straight to the 
Zwartruggen district to commandeer the biu'ghers 
there. He promised to rejoin me in a few days with 
his men. 

On the day after my arrival at the farm I rested, 
as it was Sunday, but the same night I pushed on to 
Zwartkopje, where President van Rensburg, with 
part of his burghers, was encamped. Here I met 
him, having hurried up on the news of the advance of 
a strong commando. On the following day, which 
was Tuesday, the enemy's commando was sighted. I 
had set a good watch and was early informed of their 
approach. The enemy seemed intent on occupying 

88 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

Zwartkopje, while my men hurried to outstrip them 
and be the first to take up their stand on the kopje. 
Now began a race on both sides for the nearest kopje. 
Both sides came into collision at the top. I, with a 
man named Enslin, was in front. As he got off his 
horse, Enslin was already prepared to fire, but some 
one from the enemy's ranks called across: 

"Don't shoot; let us talk: why need we kill one 
another? " 

Enslin lowered his gun, but, just as he did so, re- 
ceived a bullet and fell dead into my arms. There- 
upon a general engagement ensued, but, before it 
had lasted half an hour, the enemy made for their 
horses and fled in the direction of Pretoria. 

My burghers now mounted their horses to pursue 
the enemy, but I stopped them by pointing out that 
they had not to do with enemies, but with brothers. 
Just at that moment. Field-cornet Eloff came up 
with 50 men, and wanted to continue the fight. But 
I would not let him, and, though dissatisfied at this, 
he listened to my arguments. President van Bens- 
burg greatly appreciated this conduct on my part. 
When the enemy's burghers saw that they were not 
being pm'sued, they turned back to bring their 
wagons to a safe place. They encamped on a group 
of kopjes a few thousand paces distant from my 
men. 

In the evening, I sent Eloff with some men to keep 

89 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

watch in the neighborhood of the enemy's laager. 
They got so close to the laager that they could hear 
the people talking there, and could see how busy they 
were in putting their artillery into position by the 
light of lanterns. None of them observed that the 
enemy was in close proximity. 

That night, ex-President Pretorius entered the 
enemy's laager, and at once sent a message to me, in 
which he asked for a conference to discuss the terms 
of peace. As I had entertained the same plan, I 
readily agreed to it. Delegates were appointed on 
both sides for this conference: Grobler, Prinsloo 
and myself for the Government, and ex-President 
Pretorius, Menitjes and Fourie for the enemy. As 
soon as we met, I again proposed, as at a previous 
conference, that the Government elected must, in ac- 
cordance with the constitution of the country, be first 
recognized as legal by the Volksraad. In proof of 
our peaceful intentions, I told the enemy that one of 
our pickets, on the previous night, had come so close 
to their laager that it might have attacked them quite 
unawares, had it wished to do so. This fact did not 
fail to make an impression, and after a discussion that 
lasted several days, we agreed on the following 
points : 

1. The Government to be recognized by the 

Volksraad. 

2. A new presidential election to take place. 

90 



THE CIVIL WAR: 1861-1864 

3. The mooted points still existing to be re- 
ferred to a court of arbitration composed 
of judges of the Free State. With this 
object, the Free State should be asked to 
assign such judges as were necessary. 
The Opposition proposed, moreover, that a conimis- 
sion should be nominated from their side whose dutj^ 
it should be to see that the arrangement was strictly 
kept by the Government, and that they must have 
free access to President van Rensburg's office. To 
this no objection was raised, and ex-President Preto- 
rius and another burgher were elected members of 
this commission. At the same time, Fourie and my- 
self, with Jan Kraep as secretary, were dispatched 
to the Orange Free State, in order to ask for judges 
from the Government of this State, who, in accor- 
dance with the arrangement, might constitute the 
court. 

The burghers dispersed and went to their homes. 
When our deputation reached the Orange Free 
State, where President Brand had just taken his oath 
of office, the latter advised both parties to settle the 
matter amicably rather than bring it before a court. 
He pointed out to us that an impartial court of 
law would pass sentences on too many burghers, 
and that an understanding on both sides would 
be much better; finally, he even refused to ap- 
point the judges of his country for the purpose. I 

91 



THE MEMOIKS OF PAUL KRUGER 

now sought for a precedent for settling a matter of 
this kind, and at last discovered that an old jurist had 
laid down the principle that charges of rebellion in 
a country torn by civil war could, by general consent, 
be dismissed by a general amnesty, so long as the 
chief parties concerned were discharged from their 
official positions. The Volksraad resolved in this 
sense, and peace was thus fully restored. The Volks- 
raad also agreed to the proposal that a new presiden- 
tial election should be held. At the same time, at my 
own instance, as I wished to give the burghers the 
opportunity of choosing another commandant gen- 
eral if they were dissatisfied with me, a new election 
for Commandant General was held, at which I ob- 
tained more than two-thirds of the votes. 



92 



CHAPTER V 
[NTATIVE WARS 



CHAPTER V 

NATIVE WARS 

The Transvaalers again come to the Orange Free State's assis- 
tance against the Basutos, under Moshesh, but break up in 
discord — Kruger's accident in 1866 — Fighting in the Zout- 
pansberg — Lack of ammunition and support — Kruger alone 
among the Kaffirs. 

IN 1865, the great Basuto War broke out in the 
Free State. Robbing and plundering, the Ba- 
sutos penetrated far into Free State territory. They 
also murdered some Transvaalers, among others a 
certain Pretorius and his family, who was returning 
home in his wagons, across the Drakensberg, from a 
journey to Natal. As assistance was required in the 
Orange Free State, I was dispatched with about 300 
men ^ supplied by Pretorius. From Malap, that is, 
from the settlement of the Chief Malap and his tribe, 
near Moshesh's town, I sent a message to the head 
chief to deliver up the murderers. Moshesh replied 
that he was prepared to do so, but asked for a few 
days' delay. Before the short time which was now 

^I desire here to state that these figures are absolutely correct, not- 
withstanding that they differ entirely from those given in the historical 
works on South Africa that have so far appeared. — Note by the Editor of 
the German Edition. 

95 



THE MEMOIKS OF PAUL KRUGER 

allowed to him had expired, he treacherously fell 
upon the Boer camp with 3,000 Kaffirs and ahout 
4,000 Zulus who had come to his assistance. Under 
cover of the darkness, aggravated by a continuous 
soft rain, and a rising mist, the Kaffirs came right 
into the camp and naturally occasioned great con- 
sternation. It was not till daybreak that we managed 
to drive them from the camp. 

I had at that time a certain Nyhoff for my secre- 
tary, who had been drunk on the evening before the 
fight, and had been tied to a wagon-wheel for a pun- 
ishment. He there slept so soundly that he noticed 
nothing of the fight, and, the next day, when he at 
last awoke, he looked round in astonishment and 
asked : 

" Have you people been fighting during the 
night? " 

Our cormnando pursued the enemy into the moun- 
tains in the direction of Malap's town. At the same 
time, I dispatched a message to Fick, the Chief Com- 
mandant of the Orange Free State, who had about 
600 men with him, to ask him also to advance towards 
Malap's town, with his commando, and join me there. 
This was done, and we held a council of war in which 
it was decided that the burghers of the South African 
Republic should receive farms in the territory which 
was now about to be freed of the enemy and hold 
them under the laws of the Orange Free State. The 

96 



NATIVE WARS 

Government of the Free State was informed of this 
resolution. An attack was made on the Malap 
Momitains and met with perfect success. The 
enemy was driven off, a large number of his men 
killed and wounded and a quantity of cattle captured. 

From there the commando marched further in the 
direction of Moshesh's town. On the way, near the 
Katskatsberg, we came upon a strong Kaffir force 
of about 20,000 men. The strength of the enemy 
may be estimated to some extent from the following 
observations. When we Boers first saw the Kaffir 
forces, who were all mounted, we noticed some loose 
cattle among them, but these seemed so few com- 
pared with the number of the Kaffirs that we con- 
cluded they were cattle which the Kaffirs had brought 
with them for food. But, when we had succeeded in 
capturing the cattle, we counted no less than 8,000 
head. The Kaffirs made their way back to the town, 
pursued by our men, and, after some more fighting, 
we managed to capture 30,000 more sheep, 8,000 
oxen and a few hundred horses. 

Commandant Fick here received word from Presi- 
dent Brand of the Free State that he could not con- 
sent to the resolution, which had been passed at the 
council of war, by which Transvaal burghers were to 
obtain grants of ground in the reconquered territory 
to be held under the laws of the Free State. In con- 
sequence of this the burghers of the South African 
^ 97 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Republic refused to fight any longer and went 
home. 

I had hardly reached home, after this expedition, 
when I had to go to Potchef stroom to attend the Ses- 
sion of 1866 of the Volksraad. On my return jour- 
ney after the sitting, I met with a serious accident. 
At Schoonkloof Farm, in the Rustenburg district, 
just beyond Elephant's Pass, I had to cross a sloot, 
or ditch. The ditch was dry, but the road which led 
across the ditch was thoroughly soaked and cracked, 
so that it was impossible for wagon or horse to get 
through. Now, rather than turn back and go a long 
way out of my road, I went back a little way with my 
two-wheeled cart and then urged the mules to a full 
gallop towards the ditch, intending to make them 
jump the ditch and drag the cart after them. But the 
cart upset and I broke my! left leg at the knee. With 
my broken leg and assisted only by the small Kaffir 
boy whom I had with me, I had to get the cart up 
again, lift it on to the wheels, and, without being able 
to bind up my leg, drive for an hour and a half to get 
home. The jolting of the cart caused me terrible suf- 
fering, and my broken leg compelled me to nine 
months of inactivity, during which time I only man- 
aged to crawl about on crutches. My left leg has 
ever since been a little shorter than the other, but it 
was hardly noticeable after a time. 

Before I had quite recovered, in 1867, I had to 

98 



NATIVE WARS 

lead a commando against the rebel Kaffirs of the 
Zoutpansberg district. But, through lack of am- 
munition, this expedition was able to do but little. 
President Pretorius had promised to send me am- 
munition, but could not keep his word, as the goods 
were stopped at the frontier. In the Zoutpansberg 
district the village of Schoemansdaal had suffered 
especially from the attacks of the Kaffirs. I went 
there, and twice attacked the Kaffirs in order to drive 
them from that neighborhood. But, in these two 
attempts, all my ammunition was exhausted, and, 
much against my will, I was obhged to abandon 
the village. I offered to remain until help and am- 
munition should come from Pretoria, where I had 
sent a mounted messenger to inform the President 
of our plight. But only one field-cornet with his 
men was willing to stay with me, the others refusing 
to hear of any further delay. I called the villagers 
together, and held a meeting in which I told them 
that I would remain with them, but the villagers 
declared that they would rather not stay there under 
such conditions, but would go back with the com- 
mando, as they could then at least take their most 
valuable possessions on the wagons of their relations 
in the commando, while otherwise, if the Kaffirs were 
not driven away, they would have to flee later on, 
and then, for want of transport, would have to leave 
all their property behind them. So there was nothing 

L.ofC. gg 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

for it but to escort the inhabitants of Schoemansdaal 
to Marabastad, which place thus, for the time being, 
became the chief settlement in the Zoutpansberg 
district. 

On the return journey across Makapaanspoort, 
the inhabitants of that district complained that the 
Kaffir captain Machem had stolen much cattle from 
them and that he had acted altogether in so aggres- 
sive a manner that they lived in constant fear of 
attack. 

Machem was summoned to appear before me, as 
he had changed his quarters, and I could not go to 
him to speak with him. His present habitation was a 
mere nest of caves, ravines and earth-holes, where 
his people lived on stolen cattle and could easily 
escape pursuit. Machem answered the summons, 
but many of his people would not leave their caves. 
I therefore went myself, accompanied by the captain, 
to fetch the rebels. On arriving at the kraal, I sent 
messengers to announce the object of my visit. But 
the Kaffirs refused to listen to the messengers and 
attacked them. When I heard the firing, I ran to 
the rescue. The Kaffirs fired at me also, but, after a 
short fight, we succeeded in capturing those of the 
cave-dwellers who had not escaped. This band, to- 
gether with the others who had first obeyed the sum- 
mons, were then taken to their new home, five or 
six miles up the Nile River. At Makapaanspoort, 

100 



NATIVE WARS 

a small guard was also left to protect the inhabi- 
tants. 

This affair with Machem had caused a great to-do. 
While we were besieging the refractory Kaffirs in 
their caves, the girls of the tribe brought them water 
and food. In order not to harm the women and 
yet to prevent them from prolonging the men's 
resistance, I had them all captured, as they were 
going to the caves, and placed under supervision. 
We took them with us to Pretoria, there to be deliv- 
ered, and left to the decision of the Executive Raad, 
whose confirmation I also had to obtain of my choice 
of the place allotted to Machem and his people for 
their new settlement (I had full authority and 
orders to make him leave his old quarters) . If 
Machem's tribe should not have submitted and 
promised to behave better, the girls, according to 
English (and afterwards also Boer) custom, would 
have been ingehoektj that is, portioned out to Boer 
families under legal supervision until they came of 
age. Machem, however, behaved so well that the 
Executive Raad soon after restored all the girls to 
him. 

In the following year, 1868, I set out again, and, 
accompanied by only one burgher, made for the 
Waterberg and Zoutpansberg districts, to see how 
matters stood there. At Makapaanspoort, I found 
all the Kaffir chiefs of the neighborhood assembled. 

101 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

They all seemed greatly surprised at my miexpected 
visit. They knew I was to come, but had thought 
that I would summon them by messenger to come to 
me; and they now consulted as to how they should 
act in this case. They had never thought that I 
would venture among them alone. Without dis- 
playing the least distrust, I dismounted in their 
town, and they all kept quiet. They greeted me 
with the words: 

" When it is peace, it is peace; and when it is war, 
it is war," which implied that my arrival without an 
escort showed them that my disposition towards them 
was friendly, that I expected the same from them, 
and that therefore they must keep the peace. From 
Makapaansport, I went on to Zoutpansberg, where 
one of the captains who had fought against me in 
the previous year now offered his submission. The 
object of this journey was not merely that I might 
see the captains personally and admonish them to 
keep the peace, but also, as is the duty of a com- 
mandant general, take a census of the Kaffirs, a 
valuation necessary for the purpose of taxation. 



102 



CHAPTER VI 
PRESIDENT BURGERS 



CHAPTER VI 

PRESIDENT BURGERS 

Dispute about Kimberley — Kruger's protest against the court 
of arbitration to which. President Pretorius has yielded — Pre- 
torius resigns the Presidency — T. F. Burgers elected by a 
large majority, notwithstanding Kruger's agitation — Expla- 
nation between Kruger and Burgers — Burgers' policy — War 
with Secucuni — Dispute about the arbitrary war-tax imposed 
by the President — Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the British 
Governor of Natal, arrives with his plans for annexation — 
Conferences with Shepstone — Burgers' difference with Kru- 
ger and the Volksraad — Kruger elected Vice-President — The 
annexation of the Transvaal — Protest of the Executive Raad 
against the annexation. 

IN 1870 diamond fields were discovered in West 
Griqualand, at Kimberley and in the west of the 
South African Republic, near Barkly West. I my- 
self went to regulate matters in those which lay 
within Transvaal territory, but was very uncivilly 
received by the English miners who had gathered 
there. These people had arbitrarily established a 
kind of republic, with a certain Parker as president 
and threatened Pretorius with war unless he left 
them alone. 

Pretorius complained to the British Government 
about the behavior of its subjects. He was told that 

105 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

the districts in which the diamonds were found did 
not belong to the RepubHc but to the Kaffir chiefs 
Montsioa and Gasibone. This was one of those false 
statements with which the British Government is 
always prepared when it suits its purpose ; for Gasi- 
bone had now for some time been deposed by the 
Government of the South African Republic and 
Mahura put in his place. His district was within the 
borders of the South African Republic. About this 
there had never been the slightest doubt or dispute. 
Waterboer himself only laid claim to the territories 
at the instigation of the English. He had no right 
to them whatever. 

In order to avoid the difficulties. President Pre- 
torius agreed to arbitrate with Mahura, Montsioa and 
Waterboer. This was a mistake and very much 
against my wish, as I maintained that the Repubhc 
did not need and should never accept arbitration re- 
garding her own possessions or between herself and 
her subjects. President Pretorius asked Keate, the 
Governor of Natal, to arbitrate, and the latter de- 
cided in favor of the Kaffir chiefs, declaring them to 
be the independent proprietors of the disputed 
districts. 

One of the witnesses in this business was the Kaffir 
chief Mobilo. He was asked if he intended to make 
any claims, as he had assisted in clearing the district 
and making it habitable. He answered : 

106 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

" Yes, I did help, but I only followed the white 
man like the jackal which follows a herd, to watch if 
it can't pick up a lamb here and there." 

He was told that he too might have a part of the 
district. The Kaffii' was lost in thought for a few 
moments, and then answered: 

" No, haas, I dread Malimo's (God's) anger. 
When Moselikatse's Kaffirs were mm'dering us, 
Malimo sent the white men to save us. Shall I now 
place my foot upon the neck of my deliverer? " 

He spoke some time and reminded them how Mose- 
likatse used to put the old people to death, when he 
saw the aasvogels hovering over his kraal, and how 
he threw them to the aasvogels. He refused to injure 
the rights of the white men who had delivered the 
Kaffirs from these horrors. 

The Government of the South African Republic 
had appointed a commission to attend the discussions 
of the arbitration court. I was a member of 
this commission, which protested against Governor 
Keate's judgment and lodged its objections with the 
Volksraad against the proceedings of President 
Pretorius. The Volksraad joined in the protest and 
Pretorius resigned. The protest at least effected 
this result, that the Republic retained a small piece 
of the territory — ^that part, namely, which contains 
the village of Christiania. 

The resignation of President Pretorius necessi- 

107 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

tated a new election. A number of burghers asked 
me to become a candidate. But I refused and with 
my party supported Robinson as our candidate for 
the Presidency. The Opposition candidate was 
Thomas Fran9ois Burgers. The latter had just 
returned from a tour through the country and was 
chosen State President by a large majority, although 
we made every effort to secure Robinson's election. 
The inauguration of the new President took place in 
the old Government Buildings at Pretoria. 

I was present. After the President had taken the 
oath of office, I rose and addressed him in the follow- 
ing words: 

" Your Honor, I have done my best to prevent 
yoiu* election, principally, because of your rehgious 
views, which appear to me to be mistaken. But as 
you have now been elected by the majority, I submit 
as a good republican to this vote of the people, trust- 
ing that you are a more earnest believer than I 
thought, in which case I will congratulate you with 
all my heart." 

To this the President answered : 

" Burgher, who voted against me for conscience' 
sake, you are as dear to me as those who voted for 
me." 

Many burghers now came up to me to express 
their delight at my outspokenness; many had 
thought I would keep my own counsel. 

108 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

President Burgers was without doubt a man of 
keen intelligence and of very great gifts. He en- 
deavored without delay to improve the government 
of the country and to enter into commercial relations 
with foreign countries. Another favorite project 
of his was the construction of a railway from Lorenzo 
Marques to Pretoria, and he personally undertook a 
journey to Europe to borrow money for this purpose. 
This loan was only partially successful, but he had 
the good fortune to discover in Europe a few promi- 
nent men whom he brought back with him. One of 
them was Dr. Jorissen who afterwards rendered so 
many useful services to the country. The only thing 
to be said against Burgers' government was, that 
his views differed too much from those of the 
burghers. And this was the case not only in rehgious 
questions, but also in other matters which he con- 
sidered necessary for the development of the Re- 
public, whereas his burghers were of a different 
opinion. It must be admitted that the Republic of 
that day was not ripe for T. F. Burgers' advanced 
ideas. Even if, for instance, he had succeeded in col- 
lecting the money for the railway from Delagoa Bay 
to the Republic, the scheme could not have been 
termed a success, for the resources of the RepubHc 
were not yet sufficiently developed to make such a 
line a paying concern. 

His plans, which were in advance of the times, and 

109 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

his liberal views regarding religion soon won him a 
host of adversaries. But what cost him nearly all 
his influence and made him almost impossible to the 
majority of the burghers was the unfortunate Secu- 
cuni War of 1876. 

This war was brought about in the following way. 
The Government had leased a farm in the neighbor- 
hood of Secucuni's town to a certain burgher, whose 
cattle were seized by one of Secucuni's subordinates. 
When the Government sent to make inquiries, Secu- 
cuni returned an insolent answer, summoned his 
troops and threatened the Lydenburg district. The 
Republic was therefore obliged to bring back Se- 
cucuni to a sense of his duty. President Burgers 
wished personally to accompany the burgher com- 
mando. I was very much opposed to this, as I con- 
sidered it my duty as Commandant General to lead 
the expedition. When Burgers insisted on accom- 
panying the commando I refused to go. Burgers 
asked the reason of my refusal, and I rephed : 

" I cannot lead the commando if you come; for 
with your merry evenings in laager and your Sunday 
dances the enemy will shoot me even behind a wall; 
for God's blessing will not rest on our expedition." 

Burgers answered that it was in my power as 
Commandant General to forbid anything that I did 
not approve of. But I said : 

" Do you think that the burghers would listen to 

110 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

anything I might say, once you, as President, have 
set them the example? " 

Then he asked me whom I advised him to take 
with him as fighting General. I recommended Nich- 
olas Smit, afterwards Vice-President of the South 
African Republic, and Ex-President Pretorius. Bur- 
gers accepted my recommendations and marched with 
a fairly strong force against Secucuni. Before com- 
ing to close quarters with him they attacked one of 
his subordinates called Magali, who hved in a very 
ugly rocky fastness. But the commando succeeded 
in driving the KalSirs out of their caves and gorges, 
whereupon Burgers flew into such an ecstasy that he 
exclaimed : 

" Now, Gibraltar is mine! " 

After this attack they advanced against Secucuni. 
But in consequence of discords and the absence of 
combined efforts, the attack on his entrenchments 
failed. A certain number of burghers, under Com- 
mandant Joubert, of Pretoria, had already captured 
the position, but were obliged to retire for want of 
reinforcements. They were attacked from all sides 
by between four and five thousand Kaffirs. This 
incident, joined to other causes of discontent, exas- 
perated the burghers to such a degree that, in the 
end, they refused to fight or to remain where they 
were. And, although the President employed all 
his eloquence to persuade them to stay with him, he 

111 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

did not succeed and was at last obliged to let the com- 
mando return home. He left three strong outposts 
of volunteers behind, however, under a Boer com- 
mandant and a German officer in order to hold Secu- 
cuni in check. Later on, the latter sued for peace 
and paid a war indemnity of 1,000 oxen. 

Meanwhile the President and the burghers had 
returned home without bringing the war to a conclu- 
sion. The outposts cost money, and the President, 
for this purpose, levied a special tax of £5 on every 
burgher. This measure brought him into violent con- 
flict with myself, for I considered the tax unlawful 
as it was imposed without the consent of the Volks- 
raad. A considerable number of the burghers re- 
fused to pay. 

During the session of the Volksraad, after the war, 
in 1877, the President made a violent attack on the 
burghers who refused to pay the extra tax, and this 
in the presence of Sir Theophilus Shepstone, the 
British Special Commissioner who was already in 
Pretoria waiting to see how he could put the Eng- 
lish plans for the annexation of the Republic into 
execution. I defended the burghers who resisted the 
illegal impost. During the adjournment, I was chat- 
ting with other members of the Volksraad on the ve- 
randa, when President Burgers joined us, slapped 
me on the shoulder and said : 

" Mr. Kruger, you can't deny that the burghers 

112 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

who refuse to pay the taxes are in a state of rebellion 
against their Government? " 

I answered : 

" I deny it absolutely, on the grounds which I have 
already stated. They don't refuse to pay their taxes ; 
but they do refuse to pay a tax which you have added, 
without authority, to the already existing taxes. But 
even if the fact were as you say, I should like to ask 
you a question. Would you consider it a proof of af- 
fection to accuse your wife — no matter what her 
faults — openly before her bitterest enemy? That is 
what you have done to the Republic in the presence 
of her enemy, and this is to me a proof that you do 
not love but hate the Repubhc." 

The President was silent and left us. 

All the difficulties which President Burgers en- 
countered, through his own fault, were employed by 
the English to bring about and justify annexation. 
A large majority of the burghers who Hved in the 
plains were, as has already been stated, dissatisfied 
with the President's government, while the inhabi- 
tants of the villages,^ who consisted almost entirely 
of foreigners, and of whom a large number were not 
even burghers, were contented with Burgers' rule, 
above all because they expected great things from 
the proposed railway. When they now realized how 

^The Boer always speaks of villages, or dorpen, where we should say 
towns. He knows the term " Kaffir town," or siad, but to him even the 
capital is only a "village," or dorp. — Translator's Note. 

8 113 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

strong the opposition was they gradually came to the 
conclusion that annexation by the British Crown 
would not be at all a bad thing for them. It was 
from these men that Shepstone received petitions in 
favor of annexation. These petitions were signed 
almost entirely by the village populations. 

Shepstone, the Governor of ISTatal, was authorized 
by the British Government to discover the best means 
for annexing the country. He left ^MTatal for Pre- 
toria with an escort of twenty-five men, for the pur- 
pose, as he pretended, of discussing the Kaffir diffi- 
culties and other questions. He added openly, which 
was the case, that the Republic had not defeated Se- 
cucuni, and that this fact would be a dangerous in- 
citement to rebellion on British territory. I clearly 
foresaw Shepstone's intentions, and asked President 
Burgers not to permit him to enter the town with his 
armed body-guard, except under the escort of an 
armed burgher force. President Burgers paid no 
attention to my request. 

The President's term of office had at this time ex- 
pired, and a new election had become necessary. I 
was asked by a great number of burghers to present 
myself as a candidate, and, although I at first re- 
fused, I at last consented in order to put a stop to 
the dissatisfaction which the burghers had shown at 
my refusal to stand. But I made this condition with 
the election committee, that, if Burgers obtained a 

114 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

majority, they must rest content and obey him, so 
as not, through open discords, to give England an 
excuse for carrying out her plans of annexation. 
Already in the first week in which the votes of the 
several parties (not the official election) were re- 
corded, it became evident that I should have a large 
majority. I went to President Burgers and said to 
him: 

" President, I promise to bring over the majority 
of the burghers to your side, if you will promise me 
to take strong measures against the annexation and 
to defend our independence. If this is your inten- 
tion, you must make it plain, so that I can emphati- 
cally assure the burghers that the independence of 
our country will be powerfully guarded. Otherwise 
my arguments will, of course, make no impression. 
There is my hand on it, that I shall do what I have 
offered to do." 

Before the election took place, however, the Brit- 
ish flag waved over the once free RepubKc. 

Shortly after the above conversation, on the 21st 
of January 1877, Shepstone arrived at Pretoria with 
his armed body-guard and a few wagons. A num- 
ber of " loyal" and excited inhabitants were foolish 
enough to take the horses out of his carriage and 
draw him to the house where he was to stay. The 
population as a whole, on the other hand, took the 
matter very quietly. People who were present and, 

115 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

therefore, in a position to know, say that there were 
not ten burghers at his reception. The first confer- 
ence between the President and his Executive Raad 
and Shepstone took place on the 26th of January 
1877, when Shepstone at once made a great point 
of the " inherent " weakness of the Republic and of 
the fact that it had been unable to subjugate Secu- 
cuni. The weakness displayed towards the Kaffir 
chiefs on the part of the white men gave him grave 
cause to fear, he said, that difficulties with the Kaffirs 
might also arise in Her Majesty's territories. The 
Executive Raad appointed a commission to discuss 
matters more fully, and chose State Attorney Joris- 
sen and myself as members. I absolutely refused, 
however, to discuss any questions at this conference 
which affected the independence of the Republic ; and 
nothing, therefore, came of it. Shepstone had sev- 
eral interviews besides with President Burgers, who 
finally decided to call an extraordinary meeting of 
the Volksraad, which took place in February. 

The first subject discussed was Secucuni's petition 
for peace. As already mentioned. President Bur- 
gers had left several strong volunteer corps behind 
when the burgher commandos retired, and these had 
harassed Secucuni so closely that he was now suing 
for peace. But this did not suit Shepstone's plans; 
for, if peace were concluded, the principal argument 
in favor of the annexation of the Republic to the 

116 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

British Crown fell through. There would then be an 
end to his talk about the general incapacity of the Re- 
public to master the Kaffirs, or, as he phrased it, its 
" inherent " weakness. It was against my will that 
Burgers now agreed to his proposal to send two en- 
voys to Secucuni in order to investigate matters on 
the spot. This " duumvirate " commission, which 
consisted of Englishmen, of course brought back the 
desired answer, namely, that Secucuni had no idea 
of making peace. This dishonesty cost the English 
dear, as will shortly be seen. 

The second matter for discussion was that of a 
confederation with the British dominions in South 
Africa. An overwhelming majority of the burghers 
sent in memorials declaring against the measure. I 
myself made a violent speech against any such plan, 
in which I said that this confederation would mean 
the absolute loss of our independence. 

Burgers now resorted to a strong measure. He 
pointed out that several of the most violent of the 
opposition in the Raad had refused to pay the afore- 
said tax of £5 per head, and were consequently de- 
barred from taking part in the present discussion, 
and requested these members to withdraw from the 
Raad as unquaHfied. Although the State Attorney, 
Dr. Jorissen, was on the President's side, the Raad 
refused to accede to his request, which was certainly 
a great blow to Burgers. It seems that this incident 

117 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

confirmed him finally in his opinion that the existing 
constitution of the South African Republic did not 
give him sufficient power, and that it was therefore 
incumbent upon him to draw up another which would 
fetter him less. At any rate, he did draw up a new 
constitution and submitted it to the Raad. It pro- 
vided for the institution of responsible ministers, a 
supreme court, and extension of the powers of the 
State President. At the same time, an alteration was 
made in the arms of the Republic by the addition of a 
gnu. Although this measure met with the strongest 
opposition in the Volksraad, the proposed constitu- 
tion was at last accepted, and before the Raad broke 
up I was elected Vice-President. The people, how- 
ever, as the highest authority, rejected the new con- 
stitution. ' M S 
The Volksraad did not break up in a very happy 
mood. Most of the members feared that the thread 
by which the sword of Damocles was suspended over 
the head of the Republic would break and end its 
independence. Although many hoped that the va- 
rious new measures which the Volksraad had passed 
in its extraordinary session might avert the danger, 
it soon became evident that the pessimists were right. 
Shepstone seemed to be only waiting for the arrival 
of the High Commissioner, Sir Bartle Frere, before 
proceeding to the annexation of the South African 
Republic. Frere arrived in Cape Town at the be- 
ns 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

ginning of April 1877; and as early as April the 7th, 
Shepstone had an interview with the Executive Raad, 
in which he openly declared that he had been author- 
ized and was prepared to annex the country on behalf 
of the British Government. I at once told him that I 
would never give my consent to any such step, as I 
was bound by my oath to uphold the independence 
of the Republic. I must submit if the Volksraad 
agreed to the annexation and thus absolved me from 
my oath, but not otherwise. Shepstone thereupon 
asked me how long it would take to call the Volks- 
raad together. I told him that I thought it would 
not take long if the President issued the summons 
at once. But here President Burgers intervened, 
saying that it would not do to try Shepstone's pa- 
tience too far ; and so the plan fell through. Burgers 
proposed instead, that we should at once draw up a 
protest against the annexation whilst the Govern- 
ment of the Republic still existed, and appoint a com- 
mission to take the protest to England. This was 
done ; but Burgers had never expected it to succeed, 
nor was he a member of the commission. In the 
meanwhile, on the 12th of April 1877, Shepstone 
executed his plan and annexed the Republic. 

This annexation cannot be too strongly branded as 
an entirely iniquitous act on England's part. It was 
in flagrant contradiction with the Sand River Con- 
vention of 1852, by which England solemnly under- 

119 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

took to acknowledge the unrestricted independence 
of the South African RepubKc, and never to en- 
croach upon the districts north of the Vaal. But as 
soon as it suited her convenience, perfidious Albion 
broke her solemn peaceful promise, as she always 
has done, and as she will always continue to do when 
it serves her purpose. What misery has come upon 
South Africa through this breach of treaty! The 
late war, which has reduced the whole comitry to 
ruins, — quite apart from costing hundreds of men 
and thousands of innocent women and children their 
Hves, — this war, in which England has behaved in 
so uncivihzed and base a fashion as to draw down 
upon herself the contempt of all civiHzed nations, had 
its origin partly in Shepstone's annexation. I say 
partly, for the war had two causes. The first and 
principal cause was the wealth of the gold-fields of 
the Repubhc; the second, "revenge for Majuba 
Hill." But if it had not been for Shepstone's an- 
nexation there would have been no Majuba Hill, and 
no " revenge for Majuba Hill " would have been 
called for. 

The exasperating influence which the annexation 
was likely to have upon the relations between the two 
nations was foreseen by the Executive Raad of the 
South African RepubHc, which for that reason pub- 
hshed the following protest against the annexation: 

120 



PRESIDENT BURGERS 

Whereas Her Britannic Majesty's Government, by the Sand 
River Convention of 1852, has solemnly pledged the indepen- 
dence of the people to the north of the Vaal River, and whereas 
the Government of the South African Republic is not aware 
of ever having given any reason for hostile action on the part 
of Her Majesty's Government, nor any grounds for such an 
act of violence; 

Whereas this Government has ever shown its readiness and 
is still prepared to do all which in justice and equity may be 
demanded, and also to remove all causes of dissatisfaction that 
may exist; 

Whereas, also, the Government has repeatedly expressed 
its entire willingness to enter into such treaties or agreements 
with Her Majesty's Government as may be considered necessary 
for the general protection of the white population of South 
Africa, and is prepared pimctually to execute such agreements; 

And whereas, according to public statements of Her Maj- 
esty's Secretary of State for the Colonies, Lord Carnarvon, 
there exists no desire on the part of the British Government to 
force the people of the South African Republic against their 
wish under the authority of the British Government; 

And whereas, the people, by memorials or otherwise, have, 
by a large majority, plainly stated that they are averse to it; 

And whereas, this Government is aware that it is not in a 
condition to maintain the rights and independence of the people 
by the sword against the superior power of Great Britain, and 
moreover has no desire in any way to take any steps by which 
the white inhabitants of South Africa would be divided in the 
face of the common enemy against each other, or might come 
in hostile contact with each other, to the great danger of the 
entire Christian population of South Africa, without having first 
employed all means to secure in a peaceful way and by friendly 
mediation the rights of the people: 

Therefore the Government protests most strongly against 
this act of Her Majesty's Special Commissioner. 

It is also further resolved to send, without delay, a Com- 

121 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

mission of Delegates to Europe and America, with full power 
and instruction to add to their number a third person, if re- 
quired, in order to endeavor in the first place to lay before Pier 
Majesty's Government the desires and wishes of the people, and 
in case this might not have the desired effect, which this Gov- 
ernment would deeply regret and cannot as yet believe, then to 
appeal to the friendly assistance and intercession of other Pow- 
ers particularly of those who have acknowledged the indepen- 
dence of this State. 

As members of this Commission are appointed, the Hon. 
the Attorney General, Dr. E. J. P. Jorissen, and S. J. P. 
Kruger, Vice-president of the South African Republic. 

Dr. Jorissen was appointed by my wish, as he was 
a lawyer, and I was anxious to have some one with 
me who could speak foreign languages. 

After appointing this deputation, the Executive 
Raad ceased to exist. President Burgers returned 
to his home in Cape Colony, and the Republic was 
left without a president. I had to act in his place; 
for, as Vice-President, it would have been my duty, 
even in other circumstances, to conduct the business 
of the state in the absence of the President from the 
country. 



122 



CHAPTER VII 

THE INTERREGNUM UNDER THE 
BRITISH FLAG 



CHAPTER VII 

THE INTERREGNUM UNDER THE BRITISH FLAG 

Kruger's first visit to London with the deputation sent to pro- 
cure the repeal of the annexation — Popular meetings and 
popular voting in the Transvaal — The second visit to Lon- 
don — The KaflSr chief Secucuni puts the English doctrine 
into practice — The British Governor seeks Kruger's assist- 
ance against Cetewayo, the Zulu king — Further assemblies 
of the people and protests against the annexation — Kruger 
pacifies the masses — The High Commissioners^ Sir Bartle 
Frere and Sir Garnet Wolseley^ interfere — The other Afri- 
kanders ask for the freedom of their Transvaal brothers — 
Kruger suspected of treachery — The delegates of the burgher 
meetings arrested for high treason — Kruger once more allays 
the storm — Plans for confederation opposed by Kruger — 
Sir Bartle Frere tries to treat privately with Kruger — Kruger 
refuses on the grounds of Frere's double-dealing — Kruger 
and Joubert have recourse to Gladstone by letter — All hopes 
of a peaceful solution abandoned. 

THE commission appointed to take the protest 
to England consisted of Dr. Jorissen and my- 
self. We took Mr. W. E. Bok with us as secretary 
and left, in May 1877, for Port Elizabeth, thence 
to set sail for England. Shortly after our depar- 
ture, Shepstone wrote to Lord Carnarvon, the then 
Colonial Secretary, stating that I myself had told 
him that, if the deputation failed, I would become 

125 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

a loyal subject of the new Gk)vemment, even as I 
had been of the old. He also knew that Dr. Joris- 
sen had declared that the annexation was inevitable 
and that its repeal would be a public misfortune. 
As far as I am concerned, I declare this statement 
to be absolutely untrue. I never told Shepstone 
this nor anything of the kind ; moreover, my further 
actions of themselves give the lie to any such asser- 
tion. 

On arriving in England, we found that the 
rumor had been spread, by means of newspapers 
and letters, including a letter of Dr. Jooste, of 
Potchefstroom, first published in the Zuid Afri- 
kaan, that only a handful of irreconcilables, with 
myself at their head, had declared against the an- 
nexation. I denied this report with the greatest 
emphasis and said that it was easy to arrive at the 
truth by taking a plebiscite of the whole Republic, 
which would show for certain whether the majority 
were for or against the annexation. I personally 
wrote a letter in which I denied the imputation 
touching the " handful of irreconcilables " and 
suggested a plebiscite of the whole population. 
Dr. Jorissen had scruples against signing this let- 
ter, and I sent it alone, on my own responsibility. 
The British Government rejected the proposal with 
the foolish statement that a vote of this kind would 
involve too much trouble and expense. This shows 

126 



THE INTERREGNUM 

that England always remains true to herself: she 
makes assertions and, as soon as she is given the op- 
portunity of convincing herself of their inaccuracy, 
resorts to cowardly and insipid evasions, but at the 
same time repeats her assertions, until she herself, 
and sometimes the world with her, begins to believe 
in their truth. 

In November 1877, the deputation left England 
and, on the homeward journey, visited Holland, 
France and Germany, to try to move those Powers 
to intervention, but, of course, without result, in 
spite of the friendly reception accorded to us. 
About the end of December, I reached my home 
in the Rustenburg District and, in January of the 
following year, went to Pretoria, where some thou- 
sand burghers were waiting for my report. The 
proceedings at this meeting were not a little 
stormy when it became kno^vn that we had failed 
to receive a satisfactory reply from the British Gov- 
ernment. One of the burghers, M. W. Vorster, 
moved a resolution, which was passed unanimously, 
that an universal plebiscite should be taken, so that 
the burghers might express their general opinion on 
the annexation. At a subsequent meeting, at 
Nauwpoort, in the Potchefstroom District, this 
resolution was again brought forward and passed, 
and a committee was appointed to institute the ple- 
biscite and to sign an eventual petition. Ex-Presi- 

127 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

dent Pretorius was elected chairman of the com- 
mittee. 

Shepstone was greatly dissatisfied with this reso- 
lution, declared that he could not allow the plebis- 
cite to he held and demanded that I should give up 
this plan. I thereupon rode to Pretoria, accom- 
panied by Messrs. Pretorius and Viljoen, and, in 
an interview with Shepstone, told him that I could 
not interfere with the plebiscite, as I had said, dur- 
ing my stay in England, that this measure would 
prove that the majority were against the annexation, 
and I did not wish to be branded as a liar. I added : 

" If you admit that I was right and that the re- 
port which you sent to England on the feeling of 
the people was untrue, then the vote will be quite 
unnecessary." 

Shepstone then gave his consent to the holding 
of the meetings, provided that the burghers came 
unarmed; and the members of the committee were 
requested to take strict care that none but burghers 
who were really entitled to vote should vote at the 
meetings. 

Our committee met at Doornpoort in April 1878, 
when it appeared that 125 petitions, with 6,591 sig- 
natures, had been handed in against the annexation, 
and 31 petitions, with 587 signatures, in its favor. 
This clearly showed the feeling of the people, the 
more so when one remembers that the total male 

128 



THE INTERREGNUM 

white population of the Republic, as given in Shep- 
stone's report to the Colonial Secretary, numbered 
only about 8,000, and among those who had not been 
able to attend the meetings there must have been 
many more opponents of the annexation. The com- 
mittee now resolved to send a new deputation to 
England, with instructions to hand in the proofs of 
the objection of the majority of the people to the 
annexation of the Republic. Piet Joubert, the fu- 
ture general, and myself were chosen to form this 
second deputation; and Mr. W. E. Bok again ac- 
companied us as secretary. The expenses of the 
journey were to be defrayed by a collection among 
the burghers, and <£l,900 was subscribed for this 
purpose before the meeting broke up. The deputa- 
tion took with it a petition, addressed to Lord Car- 
narvon, declaring that the people of the Republic 
were convinced that the British Government was 
misinformed as to the real feeling of the Boer popu- 
lation, that they could not believe that England 
would wish to govern another nation against its 
wish, that they had therefore decided to prove to her 
that the great majority were opposed with heart and 
soul to the annexation, and that they hoped that the 
Government, after examining the accompanying 
memorials, would repeal the proposed annexation on 
the grounds of incorrect information. How little 
our people knew England at that time! To-day no 
9 129 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

one would presume to reckon on England's ac- 
ceptance of any such argument as that set forth 
above. 

On our way to England, we asked for an inter- 
view with the High Commissioner and Governor 
of Cape Colony, Sir Bartle Frere, at Cape Town. 
He was very amiable, but absolutely refused in any 
way to support us in our endeavors, declaring that 
he saw no reason to do so, as the Boers would be very 
happy under the British flag. 

In July 1878, the deputation landed in England 
and found that, in the meanwhile, Lord Carnarvon 
had been succeeded as Colonial Secretary by Sir 
Michael Hicks-Beach. The change was anything 
but favorable to the people of the Republic. More- 
over, on our arrival in London, we received a letter 
from Sir Theophilus Shepstone in reply to the peti- 
tion which we had handed to him personally on our 
departure. In this letter, Shepstone made a violent 
attack on Joubert and myself and threw it in our 
teeth that, if there was any dissatisfaction in the 
country, we were the cause of it. In our first inter- 
view with Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, he declared that 
he would only treat by correspondence, and so a 
long and strongly-worded memorial was drawn up, 
setting forth the right of the Republic to an inde- 
pendent existence and the iniquity of the grounds 
on which it had been sought to justify the annexa- 

130 



THE INTERREGNUM 

tion. A protest was also made against the annexa- 
tion as a breach of the Sand River Convention, 
which the British Government had concluded with 
the Boer emigrants in 1852, and, lastly, we expressed 
the hope that the sense of justice of the British Na- 
tion would no longer oppose the restitution of an 
independence which had been recognized by the 
great powers. Sir Michael's reply, as was to be ex- 
pected, was a complete disappointment to us. The 
Colonial Secretary only promised to introduce a 
sort of self-government as soon as the condition of 
the country permitted, and added that the pursuance 
of that policy of reconciliation would depend above 
all on the attitude of the delegates. We replied 
briefly that we could not believe that a policy such 
as that which England was now adopting could 
serve to allay the existing dissatisfaction and to 
bring about friendly feelings. Later, in a longer 
memorandum, we again defended the Republic's 
title to its independence; but all to no purpose. 
The delegates had to return to South Africa with- 
out accomplishing any results. 

On the occasion of this second visit to England, I 
was presented by an English friend of the Boers 
with a gold ring, engraved with the words: " Take 
courage, your cause is just and must triumph in the 
end." The inside of the ring is engraved with the 
figures which represent the result of the plebiscite 

131 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

on the acceptance or rejection of the annexation. I 
still wear this ring as my only ornament. 

On our return journey, in the autumn of 1878, 
we again visited the Continent. In Paris the great 
International Exhibition was in progress. On this 
occasion, I saw my first balloon and took part in an 
ascent. High up in mid-air, I jestingly asked the 
aeronaut, as we had gone so far, to take me all the 
way home. The aeronaut now asked who his pas- 
senger was and, when we returned to the earth, pre- 
sented me with a medal to remind me of my journey 
through the air. Our deputation landed at Durban 
in December 1878. 

In the meantime, the situation in South Africa had 
assumed a very serious aspect. Secucuni, who had 
formerly been persuaded by the English, when it 
served their turn, to declare that he would not make 
peace, had not troubled his head about the change of 
government and kept to the lesson under the new 
Government which he had learnt under the old. 
Whereas formerly he had always been supported in 
his refusal to recognize the sovereignty of the South 
African Republic over his territory, he was now re- 
quired to keep the peace, as his territory belonged 
to the Transvaal. At last, an expedition consisting 
of volunteers and blacks, under Colonel Rowlands, 
was dispatched against him, but without effecting 
much. And the worst of all was that the Zulu king, 

132 



THE INTERREGNUM 

Cetewayo, was also in rebellion against the British 
Government. England had equally refused to ac- 
knowledge the Republic's claim on his territory, but, 
immediately after the annexation, herself laid claim 
to it as constituting an unquestionable part of the 
dominions of the erstwhile Republic. Sir Bar tie 
Frere asked me, on my arrival at Durban, to assist 
the British Commander-in-chief, Lord Chelmsford, 
with information as to the best ways and means of 
waging war against the Zulus. I gave a ready and 
sincere compliance with this request. I advised the 
British commander to make every halting-place into 
a camp, by collecting the wagons together, as the 
Boers had been used to do, and always to be well 
provided with good spies and scouts, so as to keep 
thoroughly informed of the enemy's movements. 
Sir Bartle Frere asked me to accompany one of 
the Commander-in-chief's columns as adviser and 
leader. I at first refused. But, when he pressed me 
and declared that I might name my own reward for 
this service, I said: 

"Very well, I accept. I will take 500 burghers 
and hand Zululand over to you, if you will give me 
the reward I want." 

Sir Bartle Frere was a little offended when I of- 
fered to do with 500 men the work for which the 
English had placed so many soldiers in the field, and 
asked : 

133 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

" Do you mean to say that your people are so 
much better than our soldiers? " 

" Not that," I replied, " but our method of fight- 
ing is better than yours, and we know the country." 

Sir Bartle now asked what reward I required. I 
said, " The independence of my country and peo- 
ple," whereupon the High Commissioner refused to 
discuss the subject further. Later, Shepstone also 
asked me, by letter, to come to the assistance of the 
English with a Boer commando. I replied that the 
annexation and the breach which this had caused 
between the people of the South African Republic 
and the British Government made a friendly co- 
operation of the two races impossible. I could not 
but refuse my assistance to those who paid no atten- 
tion to the urgent entreaty of the people that their 
independence should be restored to them. 

With their usual arrogance, the English despised 
the Zulu impis, and the result was the bloody defeat 
of Isandlhana (22 January, 1879), in which about 
1,200 English soldiers were cut to pieces. This 
taught them wisdom; they went to work more cau- 
tiously and, in the Battle of Ulundi (July, 1879), 
Lord Chelmsford succeeded in completely defeating 
the Zulus. Later, Cetewayo was taken prisoner and 
the war brought to an end. It was generally stated 
in Africa, at the time, that the English had bribed 
Cetewayo's general to surrender his king to them. 

184 



THE INTERREGNUM 

According to this account, the general thereupon 
persuaded Cetewayo to go to a certain spot which he 
declared to be safer than that in which Cetewayo 
then was. Cetewayo listened to this proposal and 
was easily surrounded and taken prisoner by the 
English. Whether all this, however, happened as 
related is not certain. 

In the meanwhile, in March 1879, Sir Theophilus 
Shepstone had been replaced by Sir Owen Lanyon, 
a man absolutely unfitted for this difficult post. As 
a soldier, Sir Owen, of course, had no knowledge of 
civil administration; and, moreover, he was totally 
unacquainted with the manners, language and na- 
ture of the Boers. 

After our return to the Transvaal, our deputation 
called a mass meeting to report on the results of our 
mission. This meeting was held on the 10th of 
January 1879, at Wonderfontein. About 3,000 
Boers assembled and more would undoubtedly have 
come, if many had not been prevented from attend- 
ing the meeting by the swollen state of the rivers 
and by the prevailing horse-sickness, which always 
rages at its worst at that season of the year. Mean- 
while, Sir Bartle Frere had distributed among the 
burghers an open letter to myself and Joubert in 
which he said, among other things, that he hoped 
that we would make it clear to the people that the 
annexation was irrevocable. At the meeting, after 

135 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

first thanldng the burghers for their numerous at- 
tendance and for the welcome which they had given 
the deputation, I exhorted them to remain unani- 
mous and to allow no discord or differences of any 
kind to come between them, as only unanimity, obe- 
dience and combined efforts would enable them to 
regain their freedom. The meeting passed a resolu- 
tion thanking us for the trouble and sacrifices which 
we had made, and declaring that the people would 
not rest content with the decision of the British 
Government. 

Some of the burghers thought that the time had 
now come to seek to obtain from the British Govern- 
ment by force what they were not inclined to give of 
their own free will; but I explained to them that 
the time had not yet come, and was supported in my 
endeavors to maintain peace by Joubert and Preto- 
rius. A burgher stepped forward and said: 

" Mr. Kruger, we have been talking long enough ; 
you must now let us shoot the English." 

I asked him, in reply: 

" If I say, * sah,' ^ will you bite? And if I say, 
' bite,' will you hold tight? " 

The man made no reply. 

At the same meeting, it was resolved to send Piet 
Joubert to Natal, where Sir Bartle Frere then was, 
in order to communicate to him the determination of 

1 " Sdh!" is the ejaculation employed in South Africa in setting 
on a dog to bite. — Translator s Note. 

136 



THE INTERREGNUM 

the people not to submit to England. This mission, 
however, had not the smallest result, except that Sir 
Bartle Erere promised to come to the Transvaal in 
order to convince himself in person of the state of 
affairs. With this intent, a new meeting was called 
at Kleinfontein Farm, and Sir Bartle Frere was in- 
vited to attend. 

On the appointed day (18 March, 1879) four or 
five thousand burghers met at Kleinfontein. Jou- 
bert gave an account of his mission and its failure, 
and ended with the words: 

" The question which the people has now to put 
to itself is. Shall it submit or not? " 

I also made a speech in which I impressed upon 
my hearers that they must not disturb the peace by 
taking imprudent steps, but leave the matter to the 
committee which would not fail to let them know 
as soon as it thought that all peaceful measures had 
been exhausted. This admonition was very neces- 
sary, for many of the burghers were greatly excited 
and spoke openly of the need for " shooting the 
English." More voices were raised at the meeting 
proposing that the burghers should help the Zulu 
king, Cetewayo, with whom England was then at 
war, in order jointly with him to overwhelm the 
English. I combated this proposal with all my 
might, and said that the thing was not Christian and 
that one must never join with savages in war against 

137 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEE, 

a civilized nation. And thus this plan was stifled 
at its birth. 

Meantime, Sir Bartle Frere, who had promised 
to attend this meeting, had not arrived. He had left 
Natal for Kleinfontein, but was traveling very 
slowly. Possibly he hoped that the delay would dis- 
courage the Boers, or that we would return to our 
homes without its being necessary for him to appear. 
From Heidelberg he sent word to inform the meet- 
ing that he would have no time to stop at the camp 
as he had to go to Pretoria. He received an answer, 
however, saying that we had long been waiting for 
him and relied upon seeing him. He then deter- 
mined to come. As he approached the camp, the 
leaders of the committee rode out to meet him and 
escorted him into the camp. The burghers stood 
closely gathered and preserved a deathly silence. 
No one saluted him, although at first he bowed to 
the burghers to right and left. In the course of a 
debate that ensued, it was decided to meet again a 
few days later, and then to discuss the several 
points at issue. Sir Bartle then went on to Pretoria. 

Frere attended the new meeting, escorted by the 
Governor, Sir Owen Lanyon, a number of oflicials 
and an armed body-guard. He reproached the com- 
mittee with being the cause of the dissatisfaction. 
The committee took little notice of this remark and 
its only reply was that the people were not content 

138 



THE USTTERREGNUM 

to accept the annexation. Finally, the High Com- 
missioner struck another note, and said that he must 
admit that he had been misinformed, for he now saw 
that the opposition to the annexation was a powerful 
one and that it proceeded from the best men among 
the Transvaal people. The committee suggested to 
him that it should again set forth the objections of 
the people in a petition to the British Government, 
and asked him to forward this petition accompanied 
by a report on what he had seen and heard. He de- 
clared that he was prepared to recommend the peti- 
tion to the earnest consideration of the British Gov- 
ernment, although personally he was opposed to the 
repeal of the annexation. Shortly after, the meet- 
ing broke up. It appeared afterwards, however, 
that Sir Bartle Frere wrote to the British Govern- 
ment that he regretted he did not have enough guns 
to disperse the rebels. How typically English! 

After Sir Bartle Frere's visit, the committee sent 
letters to the Orange Free State and Cape Colony 
asking them to support the request for the repeal of 
the annexation. The Volksraad of the Orange Free 
State, by a large majority, passed a resolution in 
which the hope was expressed that the endeavors of 
the burghers to recover their independence might be 
crowned with success. In Cape Colony, a deputa- 
tion waited on Sir Bartle Frere with the same ob- 
ject. Of course, it received, together with many fine 

139 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

speeches, the stereotyped reply of the English states- 
men, that the thing was past and done with. In the 
meanwhile, Sir Garnet Wolseley had been sent to 
South Africa with special powers. He was ap- 
pointed High Commissioner beside Sir Bartle Frere 
with special instructions to settle Zulu and Trans- 
vaal matters. This is the man who uttered the 
famous phrase: 

"So long as the sun shines, the Transvaal will be 
British territory ; and the Vaal River shall flow back 
to its sources before the Transvaal is again inde- 
pendent! " 

At about that time, Sir Garnet was engaged in 
suppressing Secucuni, an enterprise in which he at 
last succeeded with the aid of his greatly superior 
force. 

After the Kleinfontein meeting, the Committee 
announced that a new meeting would be held at 
Wonderfontein. This caused Sir Garnet Wolselej^ 
to issue a proclamation in which he pointed to the 
danger to which those who attended the meeting 
would expose themselves, their families and prop- 
erty. He also threatened to punish all such persons 
for high treason. This proclamation, however, was 
quite ineffective, for five to six thousand persons 
attended the meeting, which was held at Wonder- 
fontein on the 10th of December. The burghers 
were enthusiastic in the highest degree. They 

140 



THE INTERREGNUM 

thought that the time had now certainly come to 
begin the war; but, while rejoicing at the unanimity 
that prevailed among the burghers, I thought it my 
duty to address one more word of warning to them. 
I pointed out to them that England was a powerful 
nation, and expressed the fear that many of them, 
once the war had broken out, would become dis- 
couraged and go back to their farms. It was 
not safe to decide on war at this moment of ex- 
citement. 

Late that night, I walked through the camp to 
listen to the conversations which the burghers were 
holding at their camp-fires. I was anxious to ascer- 
tain how my warning had been taken. Many of the 
remarks that fell upon my ears were very character- 
istic. For instance, I heard one man say: 

" I think Kruger is betraying us." 

" No," said another, " I will never believe that of 
him, for he has done too much for us and he is still 
working too hard that he should be accused of such 
a thing." 

" But," replied the first, " if he doesn't intend to 
betray us, why won't he let us shoot the Eng- 
lishmen? " 

"Ay," said the other, "I think his plans are wrong, 
but I won't believe that he 's betraying us." 

Very well satisfied with my observations, I re- 
turned to my tent and thanked God that my people 

141 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

were so firmly determined to recover their indepen- 
dence. 

At the same meeting, a popular resolution was 
passed which declared that the people demanded to 
remain free and independent ; that the burghers had 
never been subjects of Her Majesty and never 
wished to become so; that they asked for the resti- 
tution of their independence and the restoration of 
the Volksraad; and that the last-named body must 
take the necessary measures to ensure that indepen- 
dence. Pretorius and Bok were sent as delegates to 
acquaint Sir Garnet Wolseley with this resolution. 
However, these two gentlemen were arrested on a 
charge of high treason, Pretorius at Potchef stroom 
and Bok at Pretoria. 

It goes without saying that this incident aroused 
great dissatisfaction. A large number of burghers 
at once determined to set Pretorius free by force. 
But the latter wrote a letter in which he begged them 
to abandon that intention. In consequence of these 
events, I went to Potchefstroom. On my way, I 
learnt that, in spite of Pretorius' request, a number 
of armed burghers were on their road in front of me, 
with the intention of setting Pretorius free. I gal- 
loped after them as fast as my horse could carry me 
and caught them up close to the village. After 
many arguments I at last succeeded in persuading 
them to give up their plan. 

142 



THE INTERREGNUM 

That same evening, Pretorius and Bok were re- 
leased on bail. But the British authorities now 
pressed Pretorius until he at last consented to travel 
through the country and read out a proclamation of 
the British Government intended to convince the 
burghers of the error of their ways. At the same 
time they supplied him with horses for his journey. 

The burghers whom I had persuaded to turn back 
were still gathered in a body at Nauwpoort, not far 
from Potchefstroom, and I with them, when Pre- 
torius came up and read out the proclamation of the 
British Government. The burghers must submit 
peacefully, it said, for their freedom had not been 
taken from them and the present situation was only 
the bridge by which they might attain self-govern- 
ment. When Pretorius had finished, I turned to the 
burghers. 

" Burghers," I asked, " do you understand what 
the British Government offers you? I will try to 
explain to you what this self-government, in my 
opinion, means. They say to you, ' First put your 
head quietly in the noose, so that I can hang you up : 
then you may kick your legs about as much as you 
please!' That is what they call self-government." 

The burghers entirely agreed with this view, and, 
on the next day, Pretorius wrote to Sir Garnet 
Wolseley that he must give up the idea of continu- 
ing his journey, since the burghers were firmly *de- 

143 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

termined to recover their independence, and it was 
of no use to try to persuade them to a diiFerent way 
of thinking. 

Shortly after these occurrences, a scheme for the 
confederation of South Africa was down for dis- 
cussion in the Cape Parliament. The Transvaalers 
considered it of the highest importance, in the in- 
terest of the freedom of their country, to bring about 
the failure of this project for a united South Africa 
under the British flag, since, in the event of its ac- 
ceptance, there would be no chance left for the repeal 
of the annexation. Joubert and I were, therefore, 
sent to Cape Town to urge our friends in the Cape 
Parliament to oppose this proposition. On our way 
to Cape Town, we were received everywhere with 
the greatest heartiness. At Cape Town itself we 
had an interview with a number of members of Par- 
liament, at which I insisted, in the strongest terms, 
on the need for rejecting the plan and declared that 
the Republic would never accept a federation ar- 
rived at in this manner, above all as the burghers 
themselves had no voice in the matter and would not 
allow foreigners to determine their future for them. 

" Do not wash your hands in the blood of your 
brothers ! " were the words with which I parted from 
the members. 

Fortunately the plans for a confederation were 
rejected. 

During our stay at Cape Town, a member of the 

144 



THE INTERREGNUM 

Upper House came to Joubert and me to invite us 
to pay a visit to Sir Bartle Frere. We refused; 
but, when the invitation was repeated, and it was 
added that Sir Bartle wished to speak to us pri- 
vately, I said: 

" I will come, if you can tell me which Sir Bartle 
Frere it is that wishes to see us ; for I know four of 
them. The first came to us at Kleinf ontein and as- 
sured us that he had not come with the sword, but 
as a messenger of peace. But, later on, I read in an 
English Blue Book that, on the same day, a Sir 
Bartle Frere, the second, therefore, had written to 
the British Government, * If only I had had enough 
guns and men, I would soon have dispersed the 
rebels.' I made the acquaintance of the third Sir 
Bartle Frere through his answer to our petition for 
the repeal of the annexation: he then said that he 
had informed the British Government that he had 
met some five thousand of the best Boers at Klein- 
fontein and that he recoromended their petition to 
the Government's earnest consideration. After- 
wards, I saw in the English Blue Book that, on the 
same day, a Sir Bartle Frere, obviously a fourth, 
had informed the British Government that he had 
met only a handful of rebels. Now these four can- 
not possibly be one and the same man; if, therefore, 
you can tell me which of the four Sir Bartles wishes 
to see us, we will think about it." 

It is needless to add that Sir Bartle Frere's emis- 

10 145 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

sary was unable to answer the question and returned 
with his mission unfulfilled. 

During the stay of our deputation at Cape Town, 
the Tory Ministry fell, and Gladstone, who had 
often spoken against the annexation, became Pre- 
mier of the new Cabinet. Joubert and I now 
formed new hopes, and, in May 1880, wrote to Glad- 
stone from Cape Town, laying the situation before 
him and earnestly requesting him to do justice to the 
country, to repeal the annexation and to restore the 
Sand River Convention of 1852. We were bitterly 
disappointed on receiving an answer from the Lib- 
eral statesman informing us that he was imable to 
annul the annexation or to advise Her Majesty to 
abandon her suzerainty over the Transvaal. We re- 
turned to the Transvaal and reported to the com- 
mittee on our mission. The general conviction was 
now arrived at that further meetings and friendly 
protests were useless. The best course appeared to 
be to set quietly to work and to prepare for the worst 
by the purchase of arms and ammunition. The 
greatest prudence and the strictest secrecy had to 
be observed in order to avoid suspicion: this was the 
only possible way of preparing for the decisive 
struggle. 



146 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

1880-1881 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE: 1880-1881 

The seizure of Bezuidenhout's wagon — Meeting of the burghers 
at Potchefstroom — The " Irreconcilables " at Paader Kraal 
elect a triumvirate, consisting of Kruger, Joubert and Pre- 
torius, to carry on the Government — The first shot — Battle 
of Bronkhorstspruit — Majuba Hill — Paul Kruger during the 
war — His negotiations with the Kaffir Chief Magato, whom 
England was trying to gain as an ally — Armistice and peace 
negotiations — Protests in the Volksraad — " Transvaal " or 
" South African Republic " ? 

THE first sign of the approaching storm was 
the incident that occurred at the forced sale of 
Field-Cornet Bezuidenhout's wagon, on which a 
distress had been levied. The British Government 
had begun to collect taxes and to take proceedings 
against those who refused to pay them. Among 
these was Piet Bezuidenhout, who lived in the 
Potchefstroom district. This refusal to pay taxes 
was one of the methods of passive resistance which 
were now employed towards the British Govern- 
ment. Hitherto, many of the burghers had paid 
their taxes, declaring that they were only yielding 
to force. But when this was explained by the Eng- 

149 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUE KRUGER 

lish politicians as though the population were con- 
tented and peacefully paying their taxes, some 
asked for a receipt showing that they were only pay- 
ing under protest and others refused to pay at all. 
The Government then levied a distress on Bezui- 
denhout's wagon and sent it to public auction at 
Potchefstroom. Piet Cronje, who became so well 
known in the last war, appeared at the auction with 
a number of armed Boers, who flung the bailiff 
from the wagon and drew the wagon itself back in 
trimnph to Bezuidenhout's farm. Bezuidenhout 
and another burgher were sent to me at my farm 
of Boekenhoutfontein, in the Rustenburg District, 
to ask me to come at once to Potchefstroom, as the 
burghers were ready to commence the war of inde- 
pendence. I obeyed this request and found the 
burghers collected not far from Potchefstroom. 
The officer in command of the English troops at 
Potchefstroom sent to ask if he could speak to me, 
and, when I answered in the affirmative, he came 
out, described what had happened at the sale of the 
wagon and ended with the words: 

" You must admit that this is open rebellion." 

I answered: 

" I should agree with you, if we had acknow- 
ledged the annexation ; but that is not the case. We 
do not look upon ourselves as British subjects, and 
the question of the tax is not a private question of 

150 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

Bezuidenliout's, but a question of principle which 
concerns the whole country." 

In consequence of these events, I and the other 
leaders now held a committee meeting at Kaalfon- 
tein, at which the secretary of the former Transvaal 
Government was also present, and it was decided 
that the mass meeting at Paarde Kraal, which had 
been fixed for the 8th of January 1881, should take 
place instead as early as the 8th of December 1880, 
and that the people should then decide if a peaceful 
solution of the difficulties was possible. Two days 
before, the meeting was forbidden and those who 
were to take part in it were proclaimed rebels. Nev- 
ertheless, a mass of burghers met on the appointed 
day, and it was unanimously resolved that the Gov- 
ernment of the Republic should resume office and 
summon the Volksraad. The business of govern- 
ment was entrusted to a triumvirate consisting of 
myself, as Vice-President, Piet Joubert, as Com- 
mandant General,^ and Ex-President M. W. Pre- 
torius. The triumvirate thereupon drew up a procla- 
mation in which the good right of the Republic was 
borne out by historical facts and the restoration of 
the Government of the South African Republic 
made known to one and all. 

The proclamation must now be printed, and 

1 Joubert was elected to this post on Kruger's motion, although he long 
resisted, declaring that he was no general and that he did not feel suited 
to this appointment. — Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

151 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Commandant Piet Cronje was sent for this purpose 
to Potehefstroom with about 400 men, while the 
Government left for Heidelberg, there temporarily 
to fix the seat of government. Heidelberg was 
easily occupied, as it contained no English garrison, 
and the landdrost handed over his ofiice forthwith, 
under protest. In the meanwhile, Cronje had ar- 
rived at Potehefstroom and taken measures to have 
the proclamation printed. Here the first shot was 
fired that opened the war. The English fired on a 
burgher watch posted in the street. A bullet struck 
Frans Robertse, of Wijsfontein Farm, in the Rus- 
tenburg District, and passed through his arm. The 
members of the newly-appointed Government sent 
one more petition to the representative of the British 
Government, the Governor of the Transvaal, and 
appealed to the " generosity of the noble British 
Nation " in order to recover their country in a 
friendly fashion. The answer was that the local 
troops were called out to suppress the " revolt." 

I do not intend to give here a history of the War 
of Independence, which has been described in its 
smallest details. It is only necessary to say that, in 
view of their very small nimiber — in all about 7,000 
men — it was necessary for the Boers to go to work 
with the greatest circumspection. The plan was to 
cut off all the villages in which the English had a 
garrison and to send the rest of the burghers to the 

152 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

Natal frontier, there to arrest the approaching re- 
inforcements of the enemy. Another difficulty was 
the scarcity of ammmiition. At the beginning of 
the war the Boers had only about 15 rounds per man, 
so that they had to do precisely as they did in the 
later stages of the last war, first capture ammunition 
from the enemy and then fight him with his own am- 
munition. In these circumstances, our enterprise 
would have been madness, the more so as the Kaffirs 
had also been called out against us, if God had not 
strengthened our hearts, so that we went bravely to 
face greatly superior numbers. 

Let us linger for a moment on only one fight in 
this war, the Battle of Bronkhorst spruit, and that 
for certain reasons. This was an engagement with 
the 94th Regiment, which was on its way from 
Lydenburg to Pretoria. The Boer commanders, who 
had received news of its approach, sent Comman- 
dant Frans Joubert, with about 150 men, to meet it. 
When the two forces came into touch, Joubert sent 
a message to the British commander. Colonel An- 
struther, asking him to return to Lydenburg, in 
which case no fighting need take place. The man 
who carried the message was a burgher, called Paul 
de Beer, who spoke English well. Anstruther's 
answer was brief: 

" I am on my way to Pretoria and I am going to 
Pretoria." 

153 



THE MEMOIKS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Joubert and his men, therefore, had no choice but 
to attack the English. The field of battle was a bare 
hill, on which stood a few hawthorn-trees. The 
English took up their position in a sunk road, while 
the burghers had to charge across open ground. 
The fight lasted only a few minutes. About 230 of 
the English were dead or wounded; the rest sur- 
rendered. Colonel Anstruther, who himself was 
mortally wounded, sent for Commandant Joubert, 
told him that he was beaten in fair fight, and asked 
him to accept his sword as a present. He died a few 
minutes later. It would not have been worth while 
to enter into these details, notwithstanding the ear- 
lier lying accusations that the English had been 
treacherously attacked on this occasion, if Field- 
Marshal Earl Roberts of Waterford, Kandahar and 
Pretoria had not rescued this contemptible calumny 
from oblivion. When, in the course of the last war, 
he arrived at Bronkhorstspruit, he telegraphed to 
England that he was now at the spot where a British 
force had been decimated by treachery in 1881. But 
this only shows what a regular genuine Englishman 
Lord Roberts is. 

The war was continued throughout the territory 
of the Republic under the able command of the late 
General Joubert, who was then in the full vigor of 
his years and displayed his military capacity in a 
brilliant fashion that aroused general amazement. 

154 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

Under Joubert stood other capable men, such as 
General Smit and General Piet Cronje, who distin- 
guished himself in the last war by his heroic resis- 
tance at Paarde Kraal. The campaign reached its 
climax in the Battle of Majuba Hill, on the 27th of 
February 1881. 

During the war, I remained for the most part 
with the Government at Heidelberg, but I also 
made several journeys to the commandos, for in- 
stance to Potchef stroom, in the Drakensberg, and to 
Standerton, to exhort and encourage the burghers 
in those places. I also went to Rustenburg to ad- 
dress the burghers who were besieging the British 
garrison. Here I learnt that Magato's Kaffirs, who 
lived near Rustenburg, had assumed a threatening 
attitude, and I at once proceeded thither, accom- 
panied by seven men, including my son, Piet Kru- 
ger. On arriving at Magato's town, I found the 
Kaffirs gathered to the number of thousands under 
arms in their huts, clearly with no good intention. 
I went straight to Magato's hut and addressed him 
in these words: 

"Why did you supply the English in their camp 
at Rustenburg with provisions, although I had told 
you to observe a strictly neutral attitude in this war, 
which is a war between white men? " 

Magato replied: 

" I received a message from the English saying 

155 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

that they had already taken Heidelberg and were 
on the way here, and that, if I did not obey their 
orders, they would come to punish me." 

I retorted: 

" If you won't listen to me, I shall have to bring 
you before the court-martial," and caught him by 
the hand. 

While I was speaking to the chief in these threat- 
ening terms, the Kaffirs stormed into the hut from 
every side, armed with axes, assegais and rifles. But 
one of my men, Piet van der Walt, placed himself 
with his rifle beside Magato, and threatened to shoot 
him down if the least harm came to me. When Ma- 
gato saw that his life was at stake, he ordered his 
captains to disperse the Kaffirs. The captains had 
to beat back the crowd with cudgels and knobkerries 
before they succeeded in separating them. When 
the riot had subsided, I said to Magato: 

" Call in your Kaffirs again; I want to give them 
my orders." 

Magato at first refused, saying that I could tell 
him, Magato, what I wanted. But I said: 

" No, I will speak to your people myself." 

Thereupon the Kaffirs were summoned, and ap- 
proached unarmed and timidly. I spoke to them, 
rebuked them for their bad conduct and warned 
them to keep quiet in the future, as " Kaffirs had 
nothing to do with this war." After that, I resumed 

156 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

my conversation with Magato, told him how repre- 
hensible his conduct was, and eventually persuaded 
him to promise that he would remain neutral and 
neither assist nor oppose the English or the Boers. 
As I had to go back to Heidelberg, I asked Magato 
for a couple of horses. Magato beckoned me into 
his hut and, when we were alone, said: 

" I cannot give you any horses, for, if I did, the 
English would know it to-morrow. But repeat your 
request in the presence of my Kaffirs; then I will 
refuse, and then you must say, ' Very well, then I 
will take them by force, if you will not give them 
to me.' Then I shall say in my heart, ' It is good,' 
but I shall refuse with my mouth." 

I did so, and took two excellent horses for my 
return journey to Heidelberg. 

About this time, a messenger came to ask me to 
come to the Natal frontier, as the English had re- 
quested an armistice in order to negotiate for peace. 
I at once hastened to proceed to the appointed spot. 
It was a very difficult journey. Thanks to the heavy 
rains, the roads were hardly practicable, and a cir- 
cuitous route had to be followed in order to avoid 
the places occupied by the English. The armistice 
was to come to an end on the 14th of March; but 
it was impossible for me to reach my destination, 
Laing's Nek, in Natal, by that date. In the mean- 
while, General Joubert, in view of the delay of the 

157 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

journej^ obtained a four days' prolongation of the 
armistice. Together with my companions, Preto- 
rius, Mare and Dr. Jorissen, I was enthusiastically 
received by the burghers. Soon after, a conference 
was held between the representatives of the Boers 
on the one hand and Sir Evelyn Wood, for the Brit- 
ish Government, on the other. It took place half- 
way between the two camps. During the armistice. 
Sir Evelyn had received instructions from the Brit- 
ish Colonial Secretary which were to form the basis 
of the negotiations. These were: 

(1) Amnesty for all the Boer leaders. 

(2) The Boers to be entitled to empower persons 
to negotiate a peace. 

(3) The appointment of a royal commission to 
investigate all military questions and to hand over 
the country. 

(4) Self-government under British suzerainty. 

(5) A British resident to be appointed at 
Pretoria. 

(6) The foreign policy of the South African Re- 
public to be placed under British control. 

The late President Brand of the Orange Free 
State was to be present at the negotiations in order 
to facilitate a settlement. The composition of the 
so-called royal commission gave rise to many diffi- 
culties. The British Government wished it to con- 
sist exclusively of British subjects, with the excep- 

158 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

tion of President Brand, who was to sit on behalf 
of both parties. The Boer leaders, on the other 
hand, desired a mixed commission, consisting of rep- 
resentatives of both parties. Moreover, the British 
Government wished to keep back for themselves a 
portion of the Republic, namely, the Utrecht and 
Wakkerstroom districts. But this I and the other 
leaders refused to hear of in any case. After long 
arguments. Sir Evelyn Wood asked: 

" Suppose we do not jdeld on this point, will you 
go on fighting? " 
I replied: 

" That is not a fair question. If we do not yield, 
will you go on fighting? " 

Sir Evelyn Wood answered, " Yes; " whereupon 
I took up my hat, rose and said: 

" Then we need not discuss matters further." 
Thereupon Sir Evelyn took me by the arm, and 
said: 

" No, come back, you must not be so hasty." 
General Smit went so far as to say: 
" The best thing would be to let the sword decide." 
Another difficulty was the question of the with- 
drawal of Her Majesty's troops from the Republic 
and the provisioning of the English garrisons in 
the villages during the negotiations. It looked for 
one moment as though the negotiations would fall 
through, and that was the moment at which Dr. 

159 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Jorissen, by my order, drew up his so-called third 
proclamation/ I caused this third proclamation to 
be read out to President Brand, who had by that 
time arrived and who made every effort to induce 
me to refrain from publishing that document and 
to continue the negotiations. This was done, at 
O'Neill's house. It was a very difficult matter to 
agree on the different points. Sir Evelyn Wood 
did his very utmost to get off with verbal assurances; 
and, as the armistice had to be prolonged in order 
to continue the negotiations, he seized the oppor- 
tunity, while I was engaged in conversation with 
General Joubert and Dr. Jorissen, to charge an 
orderly to take the news of the prolongation of the 
armistice to the camp. But I noticed this and asked : 

"Where is the man going? " 

As soon as I heard the nature of his mission, I 
said to one of Wood's aides-de-camp: 

"Stop that man!" 

I then went in to the tent and said to General 
Wood that I asked him, as an honest man, first to 
sign the agreement containing the points discussed 
between us. The document lay on the table, but Sir 
Evelyn refused to sign. It was not until I cried, 
" Burghers, saddle ! " that Wood, who now saw that 
further evasion was impossible, gave in and signed. 

1 The text of this proclamation will be found in Dr. Jorissen's Trans- 
vaalsche Herinneringen, 1897. — Note by the Editor' of the German Edition. 

160 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

The orderly was then allowed to go off with the news 
of the prolongation of the armistice. 

When the provisional peace protocol was signed, 
the English officers tried to disparage the Boer vic- 
tory and to make us confess that we had suffered 
fearful losses and could, therefore, not have con- 
tinued our resistance : 

" How many did you have killed on the Nek? " 
one of them asked Joubert, confidently. 

" I myself had one," answered Joubert, " and one 
wounded." 

The officer laughed and maintained that he had 
seen more of our men killed with his own eyes : 

" Very well," said Joubert, very angrily. " Do 
you go and dig one of them up and bring him here ; 
and I promise you 1 11 eat him, skin and all." 

A chaplain from Newcastle, on the other hand, 
expressed to me his regard for the Boers and his ad- 
miration of their courage. The officers standing 
near were meantime saying that the English had 
fought very bravely and shot down many Boers, 
until their ammunition gave out; then, of course, 
they had to give up the fight : 

" Our fellows would let themselves be shot before 
handing over a cartridge." 

I made no reply, but again turned to the chaplain 
and said: 

" When you see Her Majesty, mind you tell her 
11 161 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEK 

that she must give her soldiers a special reward for 
the care with which they guarded their ammunition 
supply; we found it on the hill, quite safely packed 
on the donkeys! " 

Wood himself put similar questions. He asked, 
among other things: 

" What were the 200 men for whom you were 
sending to the Biggarsberg? " 

" We heard that you were marching there with 
12,000." 

" And you sent your 200? " 

" Yes, we had no more to send ; but I have seen 
that they would have been enough." 

By this agreement, which was signed by myself 
and Joubert in the name of the people of the South 
African Republic, the following objects were se- 
cured: absolutely free autonomy under British suze- 
rainty, with the appointment of a British Resident 
at Pretoria, and the return of British property 
seized during the war. The point that nearly led to 
the breaking-off of the negotiations, namely, the 
question of the loss of territory, was left to the de- 
cision of the royal commission. Sir Evelyn Wood 
bound himself not to occupy the positions on Laing's 
Nek, if the Boers abandoned them, nor to send 
troops or ammunition to the Transvaal. Moreover, 
the royal conmiission was to settle all undecided mat- 
ters within six months, to confirm the treaty of peace 
and to restore the country to the Boers. This com- 

162 



THE WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 

mission, which met shortly after, consisted of Sir 
Hercules Robinson, the newly-appointed High 
Commissioner; Sir Henry de Villiers, Chief Jus- 
tice of Cape Colony; and Sir Evelyn Wood. They 
effected a draft treaty, which is known by the name 
of the Pretoria Convention of 1881. Long and vio- 
lent discussions took place in the Volksraad, which 
was summoned to approve this convention. Five 
months earlier, in an extraordinary session, I had 
praised England's magnanimity, expressed my full 
confidence in the commission and pointed to a recon- 
ciliation with England as the basis of a happy na- 
tional existence, in order to appease the burghers. 
But I, too, now found myself obliged to protest 
against certain articles of the convention, and com- 
plained by telegram, but in vain, to Gladstone that 
several clauses of the treaty contained the opposite 
of what had actually been arranged by word of 
mouth. Eventually the treaty was only accepted 
with the reservation that we were yielding to force 
and that we trusted that, in view of this forced ac- 
ceptance, the British Government would see their 
way to alter the convention and to remove the points 
which made it unacceptable to the Volksraad, nota- 
bly the imposition of the suzerainty and the unjust 
curtailments of territory. 

One of the points which offended the burghers 
was that, instead of being called the "South African 
Republic," the Republic kept the name of the 

163 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

" Transvaal State." The country only recovered 
the title of South African Republic by the London 
Convention of 1884. But, in the meanwhile, in my 
official correspondence with the British Resident, I 
was always accustomed to speak of the South Afri- 
can Republic. One fine day the latter came to me to 
complain about this, saying that the name of the 
country was the Transvaal State, and not the South 
African Republic. 

" How do you prove that? " said I. 

" Why," answered Hudson, " by the convention, 
which clearly says, ' Transvaal State.' " 

*' Very well," I rejoined. " If I sell you a farm 
and, in the deed of sale, I say, * I, Paul Kruger, 
hereinafter called the Vendor, and so on,' then, in 
what follows, I am no longer ' Paul Kruger,' but the 
* Vendor.' Even so in this case. In the convention, 
just as in drawing up a deed, the Republic is re- 
ferred to as the ' Transvaal State ; ' but that does 
not make it its real name, but only its specification. 
Its real name is and remains the ' South African 
Republic' " 

Hudson laughed and said: 

" Well, call it as you please, only do not mind if 
I keep to the name of the Transvaal State." 

On the 8th of August, after the Volksraad had 
met, the country was restored in due form and the 
dear Vierhleur was once more solemnly hoisted. 

164 



CHAPTER IX 

PAUL KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY: 

1883-1888 



CHAPTER IX " 

PAUL KRUGER's first PRESIDENCY: 
1883-1888 

The election — The war with the Kaffirs in the Lydenburg Dis- 
trict — Kaffir disturbances on the south-western frontiers of 
the Republic — Boer volunteers, in spite of the President's 
proclamation, enlist under the chiefs Moshette and Man- 
koroane, for their war against other Kaffir chiefs, and found 
the republics of Stellaland and Goshenland on the territory 
awarded them for their services — The chiefs Montsioa and 
Moshette place themselves under the protection of the Trans- 
vaal — ^England protests against this arrangement — Negotia- 
tions regarding the western borders between Kruger, Sir 
Charles Warren and Cecil Rhodes — Kruger's third visit to 
London — Sir Hercules Robinson — Repeal of the suzerainty 
by the London Convention of 1884 — ^Visits to the European 
Governments — Dr. Leyds — Internal situation of the Republic 
in 1885 — The Delagoa Bay Railway — ^Unsatisfactory con- 
dition of the finances — Disturbances on the western fron- 
tiers — Discovery of the gold-fields — The popvilation of the 
gold-fields, the " Uitlanders " — Negotiations with the Free 
State for a closer alliance — Incorporation of the " New Re- 
public." 

IN 1882 the Raad, on Joubert's motion, unani- 
mously resolved to elect a State President. Jou- 
bert and I were asked to stand. We both accepted, 
but each of us recommended the other's candidatiu-e 
to the people. In my answer to the invitation to 
stand, I explicitly stated the principles on which 

167 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

I intended to govern, should I be elected. God's 
Word should be my rule of conduct in politics and 
the foundation upon which the state must be estab- 
lished. The promotion of agriculture; the opening 
up of fresh resources of the country and their ex- 
ploitation through the creation of new industries; 
railway extension towards the sea; restrictions on 
immigration (I apprehended the least danger from 
an invasion from Holland), in order to prevent the 
Boer nationality from being stifled; a friendly atti- 
tude towards England and a closer alHance of the 
South African states; the maintenance of the au- 
thority of the Government towards the natives and 
the friendly treatment of obedient native races in 
their appointed districts; the furtherance of all ef- 
forts which would bring the life of the people under 
the influence of the Gospel, " and above all," the ad- 
vancement of instruction for the young : — ^these were 
the questions which I considered of vital importance 
to the Republic. I obtained two-thirds of the votes 
at the election, and was consequently elected State 
President for the next five years. 

About the time when a presidential election was 
decided on, the Republic became involved in a war 
with Mapoch in Secucuniland, in the east of the Re- 
pubUc. 

Since the restoration of the Republic, Secucuni 
had been her loyal friend. Mapoch was now shel- 

168 



KRUGER'S rmST PRESIDENCY 

tering Mampur, Secucuni's murderer and refused 
to give him up. War consequently became inevit- 
able. It lasted for nine months, and in order to bring 
it to a successful termination, it at length became 
necessary to place 4,000 burghers in the field. I my- 
self visited the several commandos during the siege 
to point out to them the necessity of making every 
effort to bring the war to a quick and successful con- 
clusion. With the conmiandos was a foreigner 
named Nelmapius, who blew up the caves of the 
Kaffirs, in which they had entrenched themselves, 
with dynamite. The war did not come to an end 
until July 1883. Mapoch gave up Mampur. Mam- 
pur was hanged and Mapoch condemned to imprison- 
ment for life. But he was liberated shortly before 
the commencement of the late war and settled with 
some of his dependents in the neighborhood of Pre- 
toria. The Repubhc gained in importance through 
this war, for even her eneinies had to acknowledge 
that she was strong enough to enforce law and order 
and need not throw herself upon the protection of 
any foreign power, through inherent weakness. 

About the same time complications occurred on the 
south-western border. Two Kaffir chiefs, Moshette 
and Montsioa, were at war with each other. Later, 
Mankoroane came to Montsioa's assistance, and 
Massouw to Moshette's. Mankoroane was always 
very friendly with the Enghsh, and tried to induce 

169 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

volunteers to join him. Massouw and Moshette fol- 
lowed his example, promising each volunteer three 
thousand morgen of land. This was, of course, a 
very tempting offer. Applicants came not only 
from the Transvaal but also from the Orange Free 
State and even from Cape Colony. The Govern- 
ment of the Transvaal issued a proclamation which 
forbade the burghers to join the Kaiiirs. But some 
of them refused to obey the proclamation, renounced 
their burgher rights and reported themselves to the 
Kaffir captains. Later, the Government sent Gen- 
eral Joubert to the western frontier to demand once 
more the return of those burghers who had ignored 
the proclamation. The Royal Commission of 1881 
had deprived the Republic of the power of direct in- 
terference in the quarrels of the Kaffir chiefs. The 
volunteers firmly refused to return. Meanwhile, the 
chief Calveyn had also rebelled, in the Marico dis- 
trict, but submitted irmnediately upon General Jou- 
bert's threatening him with a commando. Massouw 
and Moshette, with the assistance of their volimteers, 
completely defeated their respective opponents. The 
volunteers were not all Boers. There were a good 
many Englishmen amongst them. These men chose 
the land which had been promised them and, joined 
by other emigrants, founded the two small repubhcs 
of Stellaland and Goshenland. The administrator 
of the first was G. T. van Niekerk and its capital 

170 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

Vrybui'g. Of the second Rooigrond was the capital 
and Gey van Pittius the administrator. Both re- 
pubhcs, however, were in a constant ferment and 
continually quarreling, and had even to fight against 
the afore-mentioned Kafiir chiefs. One party in the 
republics desired incorporation with Cape Colony, 
while the other apphed to the South African Re- 
public. Cape Colony sent Cecil Rhodes north to set- 
tle things. The Transvaal sent General Joubert, 
who was at the same time " Commissioner for the 
Western Border," for the same purpose. The latter 
informed the Rooigronders that the Government of 
the Transvaal could do nothing for them, as the 
London Convention — ^we were now in 1884 — ^had 
excluded them from the sphere of influence of the 
Republic. Joubert was obhged to make this state- 
ment, because the British agent in Pretoria had ac- 
cused the Government of the Transvaal of secret 
dealings with the Rooigronders, and the Republic 
might otherwise have become involved in difficulties 
with England. Shortly afterwards. Pastor du Toit, 
the Director of Education, succeeded General Jou- 
bert as Commissioner of the Western Border. At 
the same time, a letter from Montsioa was pubhshed 
in which the latter asked to be allowed to become a 
subject of the South African Repubhc, in order to 
obtain protection, as he was " almost exterminated." 
A proclamation was now issued, subject to the condi- 

171 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

tions of the convention of 1884, which gave the Re- 
pubHc the right to enter into contracts with the 
Kaffir chiefs in the east and west of the Republic, 
on the condition that such contracts were approved of 
by England. This proclamation placed the chiefs 
Moshette and Montsioa, with their subjects and their 
rights, under the protection of the South African 
Republic, in order to put an end to further bloodshed. 
The decree closed with these words: 

This proclamation is issued provisionally, subject to the con- 
ditions and having regard to article 4 of the London Conven- 
tion.^ 

These words left open the door to an eventual re- 
call of the proclamation, and showed, at the same 
time, that the Government had applied to the British 
Government for their consent to the annexation. The 
British Government, however, had not the least inten- 
tion of granting this, but sent Sir Charles Warren 
with a strong force to South Africa to put a stop to 
the disturbances on the western border, and Sir Her- 
cules Robinson telegraphed to Pretoria that the Re- 
public must recall their proclamation, as England 

1 Du Toit had meantime hoisted the flag of the Republic over the "pro- 
claimed" territory. This act gave rise to lively disputes at the time. 
But, as soon as Kruger heard of it, he called du Toit's attention to this, 
and asked him how he came to do it. Du Toit answered that he had not 
hoisted the flag as a sign that he was taking possession, but only to at- 
tract attention to the proclamation, and that he had hauled it down since. 
The proclamation was not, as has since been stated, the result of an in- 
trigue or of an unreflected act, but of a resolution which President Kru- 
ger to this day defends as lawful. — Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

172 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

had already declared the said districts to be under 
her sphere of influence. Thereupon the Republic 
recalled the proclamation, not being aware at the 
time that England was Montsioa's suzerain. I went 
with Dr. Leyds, the State Attorney, to the western 
frontier in order personally to enforce law and order, 
and warned the inhabitants of Goshenland to keep 
the peace. 

Shortly after, a meeting took place at Fourteen 
Streams between Warren, Rhodes and myself. This 
conference had no result except an agreement that 
each side should nominate commissioners to mark off 
the frontier line as fixed by the convention, and that 
President Brand of the Orange Free State should 
arbitrate in case of disagreements. Rhodes pre- 
tended to be on my side in the business. On the other 
hand, he tried to abuse Joubert, until I pointed out 
to him that he was attacking an absent man. The 
Commissioners now finally fixed the western fron- 
tier. I myself had proposed to settle the business 
once and for all, by ordering the mounted commando, 
together with the pohce and a few burghers who 
had accompanied me, to ride round the frontier. The 
ground marked by the horses' hoofs would make a 
capital " frontier fine." Warren, however, refused 
his consent to this proposal, giving as excuse his 
fears lest it might lead to a hand-to-hand fight be- 
tween his force and the burghers. 

173 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

I have anticipated the events of nearly two years, 
for the above incidents occurred after my return from 
my third journey to England. This journey was the 
result of a resolution of the Volksraad of 1883, which 
had decided to send a deputation to England to en- 
deavor to have the convention of 1881 replaced by 
one more in harmony with the wishes of the people. 
The attempt to settle the western frontier ques- 
tion satisfactorily was necessarily bound up with it. 
The deputation consisted of myself, General Smit 
and Dr. du Toit, at that time Director of Education. 
Dr. Jorissen preceded the deputation, and had sent 
home a report from England to the effect that she 
was wiUing to receive us and to enter into a discussion 
on matters submitted to her. 

Dr. du Toit had been the editor of the Patriot 
at Paarl, Cape Colony, and had warmly defended 
the Afrikander interest during the war. Shortly 
after the declaration of peace, he came to the South 
African Republic and was appointed Director of 
Education. The same sitting which agreed to the 
dispatch of a deputation to England deprived Dr. 
Jorissen of his position as State Attorney through 
the instrumentality of Chief Justice Kotze, with du 
Toit's assistance. His dismissal made room for du 
Toit as a member of the deputation. It was not only 
a discourteous proceeding, but, in the highest sense, 
unjust, taking into consideration the important ser- 

174, 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

vices which Dr. Jorissen had rendered his country. 
I protested in vain. It was contended agaiast me 
that the secretary of such legation must have special 
qualifications which Dr. Jorissen did not possess. 

Our commission started on its journey to Eng- 
land in August 1883, traveled by Kimberley, Paarl, 
and Cape Town, meetiag everywhere with a hearty 
reception, and landed at its destiuation on the 28th of 
September. The lengthy negotiations with Lord 
Derby, the Colonial Secretary of that day, com- 
menced at once. We were soon informed that the 
British Government was prepared to grant us the 
same independence, as regarded internal politics, as 
that enjoyed by the Orange Free State. Tliis con- 
cession was not obtained by us in return for any 
concession nor by means of any diplomacy on our 
part. We regarded it as a question of right. We 
pointed out that, on the ground of the Convention 
of 18-52, the Repubhc had a right to her indepen- 
dence, which had been unjustly taken from her and 
which had not been restored to her in 1881 in the 
way in which we had been virtually promised that 
it would be. Besides this point, modifications re- 
garding the western frontier were discussed, and our 
deputation succeeded in securing for the Republic 
a considerable tract of land to which we laid claim 
and which had been unjustly taken from us in 1881. 
During the negotiations Sir Hercules Robinson and 

175 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

I had the misfortune to come into collision. I was 
pointing out and insisting that certain farms, among 
others Polfontein and Rietfontein, should come 
within the boundaries of the Republic, especially as 
they had formerly belonged to us. When I made 
this statement. Sir Hercules Robinson, who was 
present at the negotiations, whispered to Lord 
Derby: 

" It 's a he." 

I jimiped up, quite prepared to fall upon Sir Her- 
cules. Lord Derby and the other gentlemen present 
interfered, and Lord Derby said: 

" Gentlemen, you are not going to fight? " 

I answered that Sir Hercules had insulted me, and 
that I did not intend to put up with it. I accepted 
his apology, however, and his assurance that " no 
offence was meant." 

Despite this incident. Sir Hercules and I after- 
wards became very good friends and remained so 
until his death. He was the only High Commissioner 
with whom I exchanged private and confidential let- 
ters. He was an honorable man and a gentleman 
in the best sense of the word. 

The Convention of 1884 was shortly afterwards 
signed and the Repubhc regained her complete inde- 
pendence. There was, however, one article which 
curtailed her rights, namely, the well-known article 4. 
But the hateful suzerainty was repealed. The asser- 

176 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

tion made by Mr. Chamberlain at a later date that 
the British suzerainty was still in force is false, as will 
be proved. 

After the Convention of 27 February 1884 had 
been signed, the deputation started for the Continent, 
hoping to raise a loan, especially in Holland, for the 
construction of a railway to Delagoa Bay. We were 
received on every hand with the greatest heartiness 
and enthusiasm. Banquets were given in our honor 
and all seemed glad to make the personal acquain- 
tance of their kinsmen from South Africa; but the 
principal thing, namely, the money to build the rail- 
way, we failed to obtain. Our deputation went from 
Holland, by Brussels, Paris, and Madrid, to Lisbon : 
we were received most cordially on our road by the 
French President and the King of Spain. The 
Portuguese declared themselves ready to build the 
Delagoa Railway, or at least to commence without 
delay that part of the line which would run through 
Portuguese territory. We could not arrange for 
Portugal to take over the whole line, so that it might 
all be under one management. After our return to 
Holland, we granted the concession to build on 
Transvaal territory to a few private persons, who 
laid the foundation of the future Netherlands South 
African Railway Company. From there we re- 
turned through Germany, where we were most cor- 
dially received by Bismarck and the Emperor Wil- 
12 177 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

liam 1/ to South Africa. In the next session of the 
Volksraad, I was able to state that our independence 
had been obtained — ^that henceforward the Republic 
took her place as an equal with other independent 
powers, and that the suzerainty had ceased to exist. 
It never occurred to England to contradict this state- 
ment. I brought back with me from Holland Dr. 
W. J. Leyds as State Attorney. The important 
part which Dr. Leyds was to play in subsequent 
events is known to all. His name will always remain 
associated with the history of the Republic. 

The Delagoa Railway concession came up for dis- 
cussion during the session of the Volksraad of 1884. 
Petitions protesting against the scheme had mean- 
while accumulated. I defended my plan with all 
my might. I pointed out the importance of pos- 
sessing a railway of our own. The duties imposed by 
Cape Colony were excessive and prevented our find- 
ing a market there for our products. Besides, I as- 
sured the Raad that the expenditure would not neces- 
sitate the levying of fresh taxation, and that it would 
be the very means for^the exploitation of the new 

^ It was on this occasion that Prince Bismarck stumbled on the stairs 
of the Royal Palace in Berlin, and the Emperor William jestingly said: 

" Prince, you are growing old." 

Bismarck replied : 

"Yes, Majesty, that 's usually the case, that the horse grows old be- 
fore his rider." 

The story of Kruger's stay with a large landed proprietor, of which 
many versions exist in Germany, is an invention. President Kruger 
states that he paid no such visit. — Note hy the Editor of the German 
Edition, 

178 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

resources which were about to be opened up and 
added to those already existing in the country. The 
Volksraad agreed to the concession. 

The election of a new commandant general took 
place at the same time. General Joubert was almost 
unanimously re-elected. 

The year 1885 witnessed another war on the west- 
ern frontier. Massouw, whom the Frontier Com- 
mission had declared entirely independent, had vol- 
untarily enrolled himself as a vassal of the Trans- 
vaal, but now refused to pay his taxes and assumed 
a very threatening attitude. General Joubert was 
obliged to march against him with a commando and 
artillery. The well-known general Piet Cronje 
stormed Massouw's entrenchments with his accus- 
tomed daring and took possession of his town after 
a short battle, in which the Kaffir chief was killed. 
The Boers lost 14 killed and about 30 wounded. 
Among the killed was Schweizer, the commandant 
of the artillery. The losses of the Korannas were 
very heavy, and the whole tribe broke up. 

It was a most unfortunate time for the Republic. 
The finances were in a sad condition. The credit with 
the Standard Bank had become exhausted, and they 
refused to advance more money. I had enough to do 
to encourage the burghers during my circular jour- 
neys and to impress upon them not to lose courage; 
for help, I said, would surely come. It did, but in 

179 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

a very different way from that which I had antici- 
pated. The rich gold-fields of the Witwatersrand 
were discovered and brought about a complete revo- 
lution in the financial aspect of the affairs of the Re- 
public. The history of the Republic entered upon a 
new phase with this discovery. Can we possibly look 
upon it as fortunate? As I have already said, gold 
and the embittered feelings which were the outcome 
of the fii'st annexation are the causes of the present 
misery in South Africa. It will presently be seen 
that, of the two causes, the gold-fields assumed the 
greater importance. It is quite certain that, had no 
gold been found in the Transvaal, there would have 
been no war. No matter how great the influx of 
Englishmen, no matter how varied and manifold 
their complaints, the British Government would not 
have hfted a finger in their defence, had it not been 
tempted by the wealth of the country. The question 
of the franchise, which in reality caused no hard- 
ships to foreigners, was made use of by intriguers 
to further their plans. The words uttered by the 
late General Joubert, when a burgher came gleefully 
to tell him that a new gold-reef had been discovered, 
were prophetic : 

" Instead of rejoicing," he said, " you would do 
better to weep; for this gold will cause our country 
to be soaked in blood." 

The quartz-reefs of the Witwatersrand, which 

180 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

were discovered in the year 1886, yielded a great 
wealth of gold, and so it became necessary for the 
Government to proclaim these districts as public 
gold-fields which would in consequence come under 
the influence of the mining laws. This happened in 
the middle of the year 1886 with regard to several 
farms, for example, TuriFontein, Doornfontein, and 
others. Miners, speculators, and adventurers now 
arrived at the gold-fields from every part of the 
world. It does not need to be specially pointed out 
that among these thousands were many suspicious 
characters; but, on the other hand, it must also be 
acknowledged that the bulk of the population of the 
Witwatersrand consisted of law-abiding people, who 
looked for no political quarrels, but had come merely 
with the object of making their fortunes. Other 
gold-fields were discovered : those of Krugersdorp in 
the west, Heidelberg and Nigel in the east and, later, 
Malmanie and Klerksdorp. The increase in the pop- 
ulation and the working of the mines brought in- 
creased prosperity in their train. The Boer found 
a market for his products and the treasury benefited 
by Hcenses and other sources of income. The first 
bewaarplaatsen of the Witwatersrand were sold, or, 
rather, leased during the same year: that is, the gold 
district was surveyed and parceled out into fields, 
claims or stations of 100 by 50 or 50 by 50 feet, and 
leased for 99 years against the payment of monthly 

181 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

taxes. At the expiration of the 99 years, they re- 
turned to the State. The big town of Johannesburg 
had its origin in this parcehng-out of the gold-fields, 
and in time its trade became the most important of 
South Africa; consequently both Natal and Cape 
Colony were anxious to have access to it by rail. But 
I refused to listen to this, so long as the Delagoa Rail- 
way was unfinished. I feared that the independent 
trade of the Republic would be injured if other rail- 
way connections were opened up with Johannesburg. 
That my fears were well-grounded was fully proved, 
later, in the quarrel concerning the drifts, which very 
nearly involved the Republic in trouble with Eng- 
land. 

In order to assist the new population as much as 
possible in their difliculties, a new committee was 
estabhshed, known as the " Delvers " or Mining 
Committee, for the purpose of setthng differences 
among the gold-diggers and negotiating between 
them and the Government. Cecil Rhodes was for a 
long time a member of this Delvers Committee. In 
1887, I visited Johannesburg in order to acquaint 
myself personally with the existing conditions. My 
reception was a friendly one; but I was presented 
with an address containing nothing but complaints 
against the Government. I replied that, in the first 
place, if grievances existed, they would be a matter 
for the decision of the Delvers Committee, and I 

182 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

hoped that, in this way, a friendly settlement would 
be arrived at, and that I should not be compelled to 
have recourse to force. Much exception has been 
taken to my attitude, and perhaps I should have been 
wiser had I shown more consideration for the feel- 
ings of the foreigners. But we must not forget the 
elements of which the population was composed, nor 
the fact that a population of the same class at Kim- 
berley had caused a rebellion, which obliged the Brit- 
ish Government to send a considerable force to hold 
it in check; nor, lastly, that a former accusation of 
inherent weakness had cost the Repubhc dear. I 
was determined, therefore, to do all in my power 
to avoid a renewal of that accusation. In other re- 
spects, the complaints of foreigners always met with 
the f riendhest consideration ; for instance, when they 
complained that the taxation of their bewaarplaatsen 
was too heavy, it was soon afterwards considerably 
reduced. 

The first conference held with a view to a closer 
alHance between the Orange Free State and the 
South African Republic took place in 1887. But 
it led to nothing, partly because I insisted that the 
Orange Free State should not permit a railway to 
be built through her territory which would connect 
the South African Repubhc with any of the British 
colonies in South Africa. I was opposed to a closer 
connection with the British South African states so 

183 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

long as the independence of the Transvaal was not 
guaranteed by the possession of a railway of her own, 
and I feared that the construction of the only possible 
self-supporting railway for which the Government 
had made itself liable would be delayed, or the rail- 
way rendered unproductive if other lines were started 
in the meantime. The second reason why the confer- 
ence failed was that I demanded an oif ensive and de- 
fensive alliance in case the independence of either 
was threatened. President Brand could not see his 
way to accept this proposal. I need hardly say that 
the press of Cape Colony was exceedingly indig- 
nant with me on account of my attitude with regard 
to the railway question. But I went my own way, 
knowing that my first duty concerned the interest of 
my country. 

The incorporation of the " New RepubHc " with 
the South African Repubhc took place during the 
same year, and it was afterwards formed into the 
Vryheid district. This repubhc owed its existence to a 
quarrel between two Zulu chiefs, Dinizulu, the son of 
Cetewayo, and Usibepu, who were at war with one 
another in 1884. Dinizulu had received assistance 
from a number of Boers, subjects both of the South 
African Repubhc and Natal, but without the au- 
thority of the Government. Dinizulu defeated Usi- 
bepu, and showed his gratitude by giving the Boers 
who had helped him a piece of land, on which a new 

184 



KRUGER'S FIRST PRESIDENCY 

republic came into existence. Lucas Meyer, who, as 
a member of the Executive Raad, took part in the 
campaigns of the late war, was elected president of 
this repubhc. But, in 1887, it was incorporated with 
the South African Republic, at the request of the 
inhabitants, and received the same right as the other 
four great districts to send four members to the 
Volksraad of the South African Republic. 

The period of five years for which I had been 
elected President had meanwhile nearly expired, and 
it became necessary, in 1887, to give notice, tlu'ough 
the Volksraad, of the election of a new president 
to manage the aifairs of the country from 1888. 



185 



CHAPTER X 

PAUL KRUGER'S 
SECOND PRESIDENCY; 

1888-1893 



CHAPTEK X 

PAUL kruger's second peesidency: 1888-1893 

Dr. Leyds appointed State Secretary — Cecil Rhodes causes 
trouble on the northern frontiers of the Republic: the Char- 
tered Company, Lobengula, Khama — Treaty of alliance be- 
tween the Orange Free State and the South African Republic 
— ^Arrangements in favor of the Uitlanders: the Law Courts 
at Johannesburg; the Second Volksraad — Paul Kruger's 
" hatred of the Uitlanders " — The Swaziland Agreement — 
British perfidy — The Adendorff trek — Religious differences 
— Kruger the " autocrat " — The educational question — New 
elections. 

FOR the new elections writs were issued in my 
name and Joubert's. Both of us accepted the 
candidature, but I was re-elected by a large ma- 
jority and, in May 1888, was sworn in as State 
President for the second time. In the session of 
the Volksraad of that year, instead of the former 
Secretary to the Government, E. Bok, Dr. Leyds 
was now elected State Secretary, and the former, 
on my motion, was appointed Secretary to the Ex- 
ecutive Raad, a post which was created for this 
purpose. 

In the first year of my new presidency, an event 
occurred which might easily have led to the most 
serious complications. Cecil Rhodes had at that 

189 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

time begun to realize his imperialistic dreams, that 
is, his efforts to extend the British authority towards 
the north of Africa. At that time, Matabeleland 
and Mashonaland, to the north of the Transvaal, 
were governed by the Zulu Chief Lobengula, the 
son of Moselikatse, who had been driven out by the 
earlier settlers. But Moselikatse, the once so hated 
and cruel enemy of the Boers, had in later years en- 
tered into friendly relations with the Republic, and 
this friendship was continued under his son. Lo- 
bengula was even on very good terms with the 
Boers and often came into contact with the bur- 
ghers of the Republic, who hunted in his territories. 
In 1887, he sent one of his principal indunas to Pre- 
toria with the request that the South African Re- 
public would appoint a consul in his domains. This 
wish was granted, and Piet Grobler, who was well 
acquainted with the Matabele Kaffirs, was sent to 
represent the Republic. Before he started, I 
drafted a treaty by which Lobengula placed his 
country under the protection of the Republic. 
Grobler took this document with him and, on his ar- 
rival at Bulawayo, read it to Lobengula, who fully 
agreed to the treaty, but asked for a few days' delay, 
to summon his indunas and hear their opinion before 
signing. 

Grobler thought he would make use of this delay 
to meet his wife, who was on her way to join him, 

190 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

and who was at that time on the Crocodile River. 
On the road, he came upon an armed detachment of 
Khama's Kaffirs, who were at war with Lobengula. 
A patrol of these blacks were the first to approach 
him: he rode straight up to them, to ask what they 
wanted, but they all took to flight. Grobler caught 
one of them and told him to go and fetch the captain 
or leader of the detachment, so that he might hear 
what their object was. He himself went on a few 
hundred yards from his wagons to meet the main 
body, which immediately opened fire upon him. 
While running back to his wagon, he was hit in the 
leg and fell. A young Kaffu' girl called Lottering 
ran up and placed herself between the Kafiirs and 
the wounded man, so as to cover him with her own 
body. Grobler's companions, consisting of five or 
six men, now opened fire and soon drove the enemy 
to flight. Grobler was carried to his wagon and was 
able to resume his journey towards the Crocodile 
River, but died of his wounds a few days after his 
arrival. 

There is no doubt whatever that this murder was 
due to the instigation of Cecil Rhodes and his clique. 
It was Rhodes's object to obtain possession of the 
South African interior, and he was afraid lest his 
plans should be frustrated by Grobler's appoint- 
ment. A long correspondence ensued between the 
Government of the South African Republic and the 

191 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

British High Commissioner concerning this incident, 
for Khama was under British protection. In order 
to avoid an open conflict, the Government of the 
Repubhc was obliged to content itself with an ar- 
rangement by which Khama was to pay Grobler's 
widow a pension of £200 a year. 

In order to explain Rhodes's connection with this 
matter and with the whole further history of my 
own struggles and those of the Republic, I must 
here refer to the origin of the Chartered Company 
and the aims and efforts of the Rhodes party. Cecil 
Rhodes is the man who bore by far the most promi- 
nent part in the disaster that struck the country. In 
spite of the high eulogiums passed upon him by his 
friends, he was one of the most unscrupulous char- 
acters that have ever existed. The Jesuitical maxim 
that " the end justifies the means " formed his only 
political creed. This man was the curse of South 
Africa. He had made his fortune by diamond 
speculations at Kimberley, and the amalgamation of 
the Kimberley diamond-mines put him in possession 
of enormous influence in the financial world. Later, 
he became a member of the Cape Parliament and, 
in 1890, rose to be prime minister of Cape Colony. 
But, long before this, he had turned his attention to 
Central South Africa; for it was due to him that 
Goshenland and Stellaland became incorporated 
with Cape Colony. He looked upon these domains 

192 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

as a thoroughfare, a kind of Suez Canal, to Central 
South Africa.^ 

As early as 1888, he induced Sir Hercules Rob- 
inson, the High Commissioner of that time, to enter 
into a treaty with Lobengula, the chief of the Mata- 
bele. Later, he managed to turn this to his advan- 
tage when, through the payment of a large sum of 
money, supplemented by a quantity of fire-arms, he 
succeeded in obtaining a concession from Lobengula 
for himself. This concession merely gave him the 
right to search for gold or other metals in the coun- 
try ; but he used it to obtain a firm footing in Mata- 
beleland, with the intention of preventing the exten- 
sion of the South African Republic in this direction. 
He soon saw that he would not be able to carry out 
his plans without protection from England. So he 
went to England to obtain a charter giving him the 
right to certain monopohes and independent action. 
He procured it without much difiiculty, for he found 

^ In the early days of Kruger's presidency, Rhodes tried to win him 
as an ally. On his way from Beira to Cape Town, he called on Kruger 
at Pretoria and said : 

" We must work together. I know the Republic wants a seaport: you 
must have Delagoa Bay." 

Kruger replied : 

" How can we work together there ? The harbor belongs to the Por- 
tuguese, and they won't hand it over." 

"Then we must simply take it," said Rhodes. 

"I can't take away other people's property," said Kruger. "If the 
Portuguese won't sell the harbor, I would n't take it even if you gave it 
me ; for ill-gotten goods are accursed." 

Rhodes then ceased his endeavors to gain Kruger over. — Note by the 
Editor of the German edition. 

13 193 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

bribery a useful ally when fine speeches were in- 
sufficient for his purpose, and he was not the man 
to spare money if some object was to be attained. 
It is certain that a number of influential persons 
in England received shares in his Chartered Com- 
pany. He even tried to win over the Irish faction 
in ParHament, which was not at all in harmony 
with his plans, by a present of ,£10,000. Who 
knows how many more large sums he spent with the 
same object! This will never be revealed. Rhodes 
was capital incarnate. No matter how base, no mat- 
ter how contemptible, be it lying, bribery or treach- 
ery, all and every means were welcome to him, if they 
led to the attainment of his objects. 

Rhodes obtained his charter, although one might 
well ask what rights England possessed over this dis- 
trict to enable her to grant a charter; and a company 
was formed with a capital of one million sterling. 
Soon afterwards, in 1890, Rhodes fitted out an ex- 
pedition to take possession of " his " territory. The 
protest of the Matabele king was ignored. Rhodes 
took possession of Mashonaland, and built several 
forts: Fort Charter, Fort Salisbury and Fort Vic- 
toria. It soon became evident, however, that Ma- 
shonaland was of little value, either agriculturally 
or as a mining district. Under the impression that 
Matabeleland possessed valuable gold-fields, he set 
about to annex it. In order to do so, he must involve 

194 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

Lobengula in a war, and he succeeded but too well. 
It is affirmed in Africa that it was Rhodes, through 
his administrator, who informed Lobengula that the 
Mashonas had stolen cattle, and that it was his duty 
to punish the raiders. Lobengula at once dispatched 
a band of his people, as was the custom in such cases, 
to revenge the robbery. Rhodes used this fact as an 
excuse to demand Lobengula's punishment, on ac- 
count of the massacre of the Mashonas. Whether 
there be truth in this statement or not, one thing is 
certain: Rhodes had his way and his war. A force 
under Dr. Jameson quickly dispersed the Mata- 
bele; the Maxim guns cut them down by hundreds. 
It is said that Lobengula died near the Zambesi dur- 
ing his flight. What must have been the thoughts 
of the black potentate, during those last few hours 
of his life, when they dwelt on the arts of a so-called 
Christian nation? Such thoughts never influenced 
a man like Rhodes. He forthwith explored Mata- 
beleland in all directions in search of gold, but with 
poor results. So he deliberately made up his mind 
to possess himself of the rich gold-fields of the South 
African Republic, the highroad to which was the 
possession of South Africa itself. History knows 
the successful issue of this base design. 

In 1888, President Brand of the Orange Free 
State died, after having been President for twenty- 
five years. In his stead was elected Francis Wil- 

195 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

liam Reitz, who afterwards became State Secretary 
of the South African Republic: a man esteemed by 
all who know him; one of those men of whom we 
often read in books, but whom we seldom meet in 
real life; a man of superior and noble character, 
whose one aim in life is to serve his country: in a 
word, a man whom it is a privilege to know. Shortly 
after his inauguration as State President, in 1889, 
a second conference took place between the Govern- 
ments of the two Republics, with the object of estab- 
lishing a closer alliance between the two states. The 
conference met at Potchefstroom and had a very 
different result from the first. The two Republics 
bound themselves to come to each other's assistance 
in case the independence of either should be wan- 
tonly threatened from without. A commercial 
treaty was also concluded, establishing mutual free 
trade, with the exception of the products and other 
goods on which the South African Republic was 
bound to levy import duties in order to protect the 
monopolies which she had granted. An arrange- 
ment touching the railways, which I had proposed 
at the first conference, was now accepted. 

In 1888, I again visited Johannesburg, where I 
met with a very friendly reception. In the ad- 
dresses that were presented to me, I was asked to 
establish a municipality and to increase the number 
of judicial officers. This last request I at once 

196 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

granted by appointing Dr. Jorissen as a special 
judge for Johannesburg (the other demands were 
fulfilled later). After granting this request, I 
never ceased thinking how I could meet the wishes 
of the new population for representation, with- 
out injuring the Republic or prejudicing the in- 
terests of the older burghers. For, although all the 
complaints of the Uitlanders always met with a 
friendly hearing from the Executive Raad, which 
had received full powers from the Volksraad to leg- 
islate for the population of the gold-fields, and al- 
though as much was granted as possible, neverthe- 
less it was evident to me that some means must be 
found to give the Uitlanders a voice in the represen- 
tation of the country. I believed that I had discov- 
ered this means in the institution of a Second 
Volksraad, and it was my own idea, for which I 
made myself alone responsible, that to this body 
might be entrusted the discussion of all questions, 
such as, for instance, the gold laws, telegraphs, etc., 
which were mainly of interest to the new arrivals. 

In this manner I endeavored to open the way to 
the new population for the legal presentation and 
remedy of their grievances. Hitherto they had been 
prevented by the conditions necessary for obtaining 
the franchise. The constitution prescribed that a, 
foreigner must have been registered for five years 
on the field cornets' lists before he could be natural- 

197 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ized. My proposal for a Second Volksraad in- 
volved this alteration in the law, that only two years' 
registration would be necessary for purposes of nat- 
uralization and that the naturalized person would 
then have the right to vote for members of the 
Second Volksraad and for all officials holding 
elective posts, with the exception of the State 
President, the Commandant General and the mem- 
bers of the First Volksraad. Any person en- 
joying this right for two years, therefore, in four 
years in all after his registration on the field cornets' 
lists as an inhabitant of the Republic, would become 
entitled to be himself elected a member of the Second 
Volksraad. Ten years later, he was to receive full 
burgher rights, that is to say, the same civic rights 
as those possessed by the old burghers. 

This proposal met with lively opposition, as some 
members of the Volksraad looked upon it as a piece 
of class legislation, as, in a certain measure, it un- 
doubtedly was, while others were of the opinion that 
it gave too many rights to the foreigners. The mat- 
ter was adjourned in order that the opinion of the 
people might be taken. The burghers, however, ap- 
proved of the proposal, which was a proof of their 
confidence in their President; for I feel sure that 
such a proposal would never have been carried if it 
had been moved by any other than myself. In re- 

198 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

sponse to the public wish, the law was now passed, 
by a large majority, at the next annual session of 
the Raad. 

The Uitlanders contended in the English press, 
and Mr. Chamberlain made the contention his own, 
that the Second Volksraad was of no practical use. 
It is only necessary to say that, notwithstanding that 
the laws and resolutions of the Second Volksraad 
had to be submitted to the ratification of the First 
Volksraad, the latter body only once rejected a de- 
cision of the Second Volksraad, and that was in the 
matter of the dispute about the bewaarplaatsen, 
when the Second Volksraad wished to grant the 
mining rights of an estate, without more ado, to a 
tenant who had leased only the surface rights. 

It must not be forgotten either that these altera- 
tions of the constitution in favor of the Uitlanders 
were introduced by myself and accepted by the 
Volksraad in spite of the fact that, only a little ear- 
lier, an incident had occurred at Johannesburg of a 
character very insulting to me and to the burghers. 
I was going to Norval's Point, on the Orange River, 
to meet the High Commissioner in the matter of the 
Swaziland question. On the road, I stopped at 
Johannesburg, where, as usual, a deputation came 
to lay its grievances before me. It was quite impos- 
sible for me to concede all the wishes of these people 

199 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

on the spot. One of the deputation threw the re- 
proach in my face that I treated the new popula- 
tion with contempt. I angrily answered: 

" I have no contempt for the new population, but 
only for men like yourself." 

In the evening, a riot took place in front of Mr. 
van Brandis's house, where I was staying: the flag 
of the Republic was pulled down and torn to pieces. 
It is easy to see that this provoked the old population 
almost beyond endurance, but I quieted them by say- 
ing that the inhabitants in general were loyal bur- 
ghers and that the scandal must be laid to the charge 
of a few rioters. When I met the High Commis- 
sioner at Norval's Point, he spoke to me of the riot 
at Johannesburg, and I said: 

"Yes, Sir Henry; you see, those people remind 
me of a baboon I once had, which was so fond of me 
that he would not let any one touch me. But one 
day we were sitting round the fire, and unfortu- 
nately the beast's tail got caught in the fire. He now 
flew at me furiously, thinking that I was the cause 
of his accident. The Johannesburgers are just like 
that. They have burnt their fingers in speculations 
and now they want to revenge themselves on Paul 
Kruger." 

A fresh occasion for provoking foreign hatred 
against me presented itself at the time of the sep- 
tennial commemoration of the Declaration of Inde- 

200 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

pendence at Paarde Kraal. I made a long speech to 
some thousands of people in which I set forth how 
I viewed the history of my people in the light of 
God's Word. I began by addressing my hearers: 

" People of the Lord, you old people of the coun- 
try, you foreigners, you new-comers, yes, even you 
thieves and murderers ! " 

The Uitlanders, who were always on the watch 
to invent grievances against the President and the 
Government, were furious at this address, and de- 
clared that I had called them thieves and murderers, 
which was, of course, an absolute lie. I merely 
wished to say that I called upon everybody, even 
thieves and murderers, if there were any such in the 
meeting, to humble themselves before God and to 
acknowledge the wonders in God's dealings with 
the people of the Republic. If any insult was con- 
veyed in these words, it applied just as much to the 
old as to the new population, as any sensible person, 
who took the trouble to follow my train of thought, 
would have perceived for himself. 

The Swaziland question, in connection with which 
I had gone to meet Sir Henry Loch, had given the 
Republic great trouble. Swaziland formerly be- 
longed to the Republic, but was taken from it by the 
Royal Commission of 1881. Except on the east, it 
is bounded on every side by the South African Re- 
public. Some of the burghers had obtained certain 

201 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

concessions from the Swazi king, Umbandine. 
Other persons, mostly adventurers, demanded simi- 
lar concessions, and were so great a nuisance and 
annoyance to the King that he asked the British 
Government to send him an adviser. 'No time was 
lost in complying with his request, as this would 
bring Swaziland within the sphere of British influ- 
ence. OiFy Shepstone, son of the Sir Theophilus 
Shepstone who annexed the Republic in 1877, was 
appointed adviser to Umbandine by the High Com- 
missioner. But the confusion in the land grew 
worse and worse, till at last the real government of 
the country was handed over to a kind of committee 
consisting of Boers and Englishmen. It was ob- 
vious that such a condition of things could not last, 
and Sir Hercules Robinson did not appear at all 
averse to the annexation of the country by the Re- 
public. Needless to say that this arrangement did 
not suit the Jingoes and " humanitarians " in Eng- 
land ; so the British Government decided to dispatch 
Sir Francis de Winton as a special envoy to look 
into the affairs of Swaziland. 

General Joubert had an interview, on behalf of 
the South African Republic, with Sir Francis de 
Winton, at which he explained the reason why 
the Transvaal Government desired to incorporate 
Swaziland with the Republic. After the British 
Government had received de Winton's report, they 

202 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

commissioned Sir Hem:y Loch, the new Gov- 
ernor of Cape Colony, to communicate with me. 
We met in conference at Blignautspont ; and 
Rhodes was also present at the meeting. I did 
all I could to induce the British Government to 
agree to the incorporation of Swaziland, as well 
as of Sambaanland and Umbigesaland, with which 
the Republic had already come to an understand- 
ing. Sir Henry Loch did all in his power to 
obtain the consent of the Republic to a scheme for 
a railway which Natal desired to build as far 
as Johannesburg in order to bring about a gen- 
eral South African customs-union. I would not 
listen to the proposal of a general customs-union; 
not because I was opposed to the scheme, but because 
my first condition was always my demand for a port : 
port first, customs-union after. I agreed to the rail- 
way scheme, not on any special grounds, but because 
I desired to meet Natal in the matter. But I de- 
clined to treat this railway scheme, as a condition in 
entirely different questions; and with regard to 
the tariff question, it was necessary that I should 
first put myself in communication with the Portu- 
guese Government, as there already existed an un- 
derstanding between myself and them on the subject. 
In fact, the Portuguese Government had only deter- 
mined to build the Delagoa Bay Railway on condi- 
tion that no new line to Johannesburg should be 

203 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

built that would be shorter than the Delagoa 
Line. The outcome of the conference was that the 
High Commissioner agreed to draft a deed which 
he was to submit to me. At the same time he ex- 
pressed the wish that Dr. Leyds, who was present 
at the negotiations, should remain behind and be 
present also at the drafting of the document in order 
to explain it, should it be necessary to throw addi- 
tional light upon any particular point for my 
benefit. He was then to sign a declaration that he 
had been present at the drafting of the deed. There- 
upon the conference broke up. 

Shortly afterwards Sir Henry Loch sent me his 
draft proposals, containing the following main 
points: 

Swaziland to be governed in common; the Re- 
public to receive permission to build a railway as far 
as Kosi Bay. A strip of land, three miles broad, 
was ceded to her for this purpose. But the British 
Government retained the protectorate over this dis- 
trict and over Kosi Bay as well: a condition which 
made the acceptance of the offer by the Republic 
impossible from the commencement; 

The Transvaal, besides, to receive permission to 
annex a small piece of land, the so-called Little 
Free State, situated between the Republic and 
Swaziland. 

Sir Henry Loch insisted that this was the under- 

204 



KRUGER'S SECOjN^D PRESIDENCY 

standing at which he had arrived with me at Bhg- 
nautspont, and that Dr. Leyds, after the closing of 
the conference, had expressed himself satisfied with 
the conditions and had signed them in proof of his 
agreement. Both Dr. Leyds and I disputed this as- 
sertion, and I refused to accept the conditions of the 
draft. Loch threatened that, unless it was accepted, 
the British Government would avail themselves of 
their right, under the London Convention, to send 
an armed force into Swaziland. 

Shortly after, Jan Hofmeyer came to Pretoria, 
in order to mediate, and, with his assistance, the first 
Swaziland Convention was agreed upon. Needless 
to say that the Republic received very little benefit 
indeed: nay, she lost; for she was prevented from 
making any treaty in future with the natives in the 
north and north-west. Further, she had to agree 
not to put any difficulties in the way of a railway 
connection with Natal and — ^here we again see Cecil 
Rhodes's hand — ^to assist the Chartered Company 
to the best of her ability in the north. This last con- 
dition, as we shall see later, gave rise to great diffi- 
culties. 

The Volksraad accepted the agreement, but ex- 
pressed its regret very freely at the absence of 
mutual accommodation which the Republic had en- 
countered on the part of England. The unsatisfac- 
tory state of things resulting from this agreement 

205 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

lasted until 1893, when a second Swaziland Conven- 
tion was concluded. 

Two events occurred during my second presi- 
dency which called forth great opposition against 
myself. The first of these was the Adendorff trek; 
the second a conference on church matters. The 
Adendorff trek had its origin in a concession which 
a certain Adendorff and Mr. B. Foster, jun., had 
obtained in Banjailand and which they vainly en- 
deavored to sell to Cecil Rhodes. Rhodes declared 
that the concession was illegal, whereupon its own- 
ers resolved to trek to the territory which had been 
leased to them. The High Commissioner and 
Rhodes both opposed this trek, as they considered 
that it endangered the interests of the Chartered 
Company, and they asked me, in accordance with 
the Swaziland Convention, to forbid the trekkers to 
carry out their project. I immediately published 
a declaration against the trek and issued a procla- 
mation in which the burghers throughout the coun- 
try were strictly forbidden to take part in it. Any 
one disobeying the proclamation was threatened 
with the utmost rigors of the law. A section of the 
burghers openly protested against this proclama- 
tion, and, although I knew that it was likely to cost 
me some of my popularity, I was in honor bound 
to observe the decisions of the Swaziland Convention, 
little though they appealed to me. How dear this 

206 



KRUGER'S SECOND PRESIDENCY 

attitude cost me was shown at the next presidential 
election; for, although my opponents brought up 
many other grievances against me, the fact that 
I had prevented the Adendorif trek was one of 
the chief reasons that caused a number of burghers 
to vote for my opponents. This question afterwards 
came up for discussion in the Volksraad, and, in the 
debate that followed, many influential members 
spoke against the proclamation, including the late 
General Joubert and Mr. Schalk Burger, who be- 
came Acting President of the Republic during the 
late war, after my departure for Europe. Even- 
tually, however, the Volksraad accepted the procla- 
mation and nothing came of the whole movement, 
this being due, to a great extent, to my endeavors 
to see the burghers personally, whenever I could, 
and persuade them from joining the trek. 

At the same time that the Republic had to en- 
counter these difficulties in external politics, quar- 
rels arose in regard to church matters. 

After the war of 1881, the burghers felt the neces- 
sity of consolidation in ecclesiastical matters, and the 
result was a union between the Hervormde and the 
Nederduitsch-Gereformeerde Churches. The third 
evangelical church community, the CTiristelijh-Gere- 
formeerde, or so-called Dopper Church, of which I 
was a member, had hesitated to join the union, and 
was therefore not directly mixed up in these quar- 

207 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

rels. Shortly after the union, fresh differences of 
opinion arose, and several burghers, whose leader 
was Christian Joubert, wished to have no more to 
do with the union and decided to remain in the Her- 
vormde Church. Others followed later on, and their 
leader was A. D. W. Wolmarans, who was at that 
time in Europe as a delegate. Difficult questions 
naturally arose regarding the right of ownership 
to church property, for the members who separated 
from the Hervormde Church laid claims to its prop- 
erty, as did those who remained faithful to the 
union. It is not surprising that this situation gave 
rise to bitter disputes and many quarrels. 

In order to put a stop to these bickerings, I sent 
a circular note to the pastors and elders of the dif- 
ferent parties, inviting them to a conference at 
which an attempt would be made to remove these 
difficulties. It took place, in 1891, in the House of 
the Second Volksraad, I myself presiding. All par- 
ties were represented. In my opening speech, I 
asked them to look upon me, not as the State Presi- 
dent, but as a brother and fellow-Christian, anxious 
to do my share to put an end to the unhappy state 
of things by removing the cause of quarrel. I tried 
hard to restore the union, thinking that, by doing 
so, I should succeed in healing the breach. But it 
soon became obvious that my attempts were doomed 
to failure, and I accordingly passed on to the ques- 

208 



KRUGER'S SECOl^^D PRESIDENCY 

tion of the right of property. But here, too, all my 
efforts to reconcile their differences proved fruitless. 
The conference closed without any satisfactory so- 
lution of the vexed question having been arrived at. 

Although I really instituted this conference with 
the best intentions, it was nevertheless employed as 
a weapon against me by my enemies. I was re- 
proached at the next presidential election with being 
an autocrat and with wishing to interfere in every- 
thing, even in church matters. 

This new presidential election was due in the fol- 
lowing year. This time, there were three candidates 
in the field: myself, Joubert and Chief Justice 
Kotze ; and it proved the most violent electoral strug- 
gle through which the Republic ever passed. I was 
accused by the Opposition of being autocratic, of 
squandering the national money, of giving away all 
rights and privileges in the form of concessions and 
of awarding all the offices of state to the Hollanders. 
Reproaches upon reproaches were also hurled 
against the Opposition. It is far from pleasant to 
carry back one's thoughts to that time, when the two 
chief men in the Republic were painted so black 
that, if only the tenth part of the accusations flung 
at us had been based upon truth, neither of us would 
have been worthy to enjoy the confidence of the peo- 
ple for another hour. 



14 



209 



CHAPTER XI 

PAUL KRUGER'S 
THIRD PRESIDENCY: 

1893-1898 



CHAPTER XI 

PAUL KRUGER's third PRESIDENCY: 1893-1898 

The Transvaal National Union — The second Swaziland Agree- 
ment — DiflScnlties with the Kaffir tribes in the Blue Moun- 
tains — The English immigrants refuse to perform military- 
service — Sir Henry Loch at Pretoria — The President insulted 
— Annexation of Sambaanland and Umbigesaland by Eng- 
land — Solemn opening of the Delagoa Bay Railway and 
tariff war with Cape Colony — The Jameson Raid — Mr. 
Chamberlain's policy of provocation — The report of the 
Mining Commission — The struggle between the Government 
and the Supreme Court — Sir Alfred Milner — New elections — 
The Queen of England a "hwaaie vrouw" — Closer alliance 
with the Orange Free State. 



T 



HE result of the new election was : 

Kruger 7,854 votes 

Joubert 7,009 „ 

Chief Justice Kotze ... 81 „ 



Joubert's party was dissatisfied with the result and 
entered a protest against my election. When the 
Volksraad met, on the 1st of May, a committee of 
six, consisting of three of Joubert's followers and 
three of mine, was appointed to hold a scrutiny. A 
resolution was passed, at the same time, by which 
I was to remain in office until the committee had given 
its decision, although my term of office nominally 

213 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEll 

expired on the 5th of May. The majority of the 
committee were of opinion that the election had been 
legally conducted. Nevertheless the minority handed 
in their own report recommending a new election. 
The Volksraad, on the other hand, accepted the re- 
port of the majority by 18 votes to 3, with the result 
that, on the 12th of May 1893, I was installed as 
State President for the third time. After being 
sworn in, I once more addressed the people, this time 
from the balcony of the new Government Buildings, 
while the public stood crowded in large numbers in 
the Church Square in front. I exhorted the burghers 
to remain unanimous, spoke a word of greeting to 
the women of the country and, lastly and particularly, 
admonished the children, with whom the future lay, 
to continue true to their mother tongue.^ Combined 

^ This admonition was uttered especially in connection with the educa- 
tional reforms which had been introduced in the previous year and which 
were based upon the principle that the Dutch language was to be employed 
as the educational medium. 

The portion of Kruger's speech to which he refers, ran as follows: 

" Dear children, you are the ones upon whom the State President 
keeps his eye, for I see our future Church and State in your hands, for 
when all the old people are gone, you will be the Church and State; but, 
if you depart from the truth and stray, then you will lose your inheri- 
tance. Stand firm by God's Word, in which your parents have brought 
you up. Love that Word. I shall endeavor with all my might to assist 
churches and schools, to let you receive a Christian education, so that 
you may both religiously and socially become useful members of Church 
and State, and I trust that the teachers and ministers will also do their 
best. It is a great privilege that your Government has ordered a Chris- 
tian education, and you are greatly privileged in being able to enjoy a 
Christian education, and not you alone, for the object is to extend it so 
that every one maj' have the opportunity of receiving it and turning it 

214 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

efforts on the part of the burghers were especially 
needed that year, as the country had been visited by 

to account. . . . It is also a great privilege for you that the Govern- 
ment and Volksraad have accepted our language as the State language. 
Keep to that, keep to the language in which your forefathers, whom God 
led out of the wilderness, struggled and prayed to God, and which be- 
came ever dearer and dearer to them : the language in which the Bible 
comes to you, and in which your forefathers read the Bible, and which 
contains the religion of your forefathers. And, therefore, if you become 
indifferent to your language, you also become indilFerent to your fore- 
fathers and indifferent to the Bible and indifferent to your religion ; and 
then you will soon stray away entirely and you will rob posterity of your 
Dutch Bible and of your religion, which God confirmed to your forefathers 
with wonders and miracles. Stand firm then, so that you shall not be 
trusted in vain, and keep to your language, your Bible and your religion. 
It is a good thing to learn foreign languages, especially the language of 
your neighbors with whom you have most to do; but let any foreign lan- 
guage be a second language to you. Pray to God that you may stand firm 
on this point and not stray, so that the Lord may remain amongst you, 
and then posterity will honor you for your loyalty." 

It was just the two points of view touched upon in this speech which 
President Burgers had neglected in the educational law which he had 
drafted in 1874, and, with the aid of his eloquence, had induced the 
Volksraad to pass. He was opposed to the religious convictions of the 
nation. He had abolished the religious basis upon which the schools were 
founded. And therefore his law, wherever he himself was not able to 
plead for it with the power of his rhetoric, remained a dead letter. 

After the War of Independence, one of the first cares of the regency, 
at whose head Kruger stood as Vice-President, was to obtain an educa- 
tional law that should satisfy the real needs and wishes of the nation. 
Kruger thought he had found the man who possessed the necessary ex- 
perience and who shared the convictions of the Boers in Dr. du Toit, 
and appointed him Superintendent of Education. He drafted a law which 
was passed by the Volksraad in 1882, but, although his intention was 
good, the execution was faulty. Du Toit was more of a politician than a 
schoolman, and he resigned his office in 1889. The development of the 
gold-fields and the influx of emigrants at that time made such demands 
upon the powers and attention of the Government that it was unable to 
devote as much care to the schools as it would have Avished. And so the 
post of Director of Education remained vacant for some time. After 
this, when a new holder of this post was looked for, the division of the 
people into different Church parties determined them not again to appoint 

215 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

heavy floods. The rivers rose higher than had been 
known within human memory and did enormous 
damage. 

In the year preceding the election of 1893, which 

an ecclesiastic. Professor Mansvelt, the Professor of Modern Languages 
at Stellenbosch, was therefore approached. He at first refused, but, 
when again called upon and after a personal interview with the President, 
accepted, at the end of 1891. After he had satisfied himself by a long 
journey of inspection as to the condition of the schools throughout the 
country, he drafted a new law with the assistance of a committee ap- 
pointed by the Volksraad for that purpose. The law was first submitted 
to the people and afterwards passed unanimously by the Volksraad. 

In the main points, the outlines of the law of 1882 were preserved, but 
in certain respects the new law was a great improvement and advance 
upon the old. President Kruger took part personally in all the delibera- 
tions; most of the sittings were even held in his house. He had origi- 
nally entertained misgivings as to three points in particular. The in- 
creased state grants caused him to fear lest private initiative should be 
relaxed and the duty incumbent upon Christian parents transferred to the 
state. He had seen in his own church how the heavy burdens which it 
owed towards the state church had strengthened its readiness to perform 
acts of self-sacrifice. But he was at last obliged to admit that the per- 
ception of the necessity for supplying the best possible education to the 
children of a people that was called upon to hold its own in the inheri- 
tance of its fathers against a great European influx was not yet suffi- 
ciently general to aUow him to act in accordance with his idealistic views. 
Moreover, model schools were required, and higher schools for the train- 
ing of civil servants out of the children of the country, and this necessi- 
tated financial sacrifices that could not be borne by private individuals. 
And so now, as again later, the President accepted the position, without 
in any way surrendering his principle. 

He also entertained misgivings regarding the demand of a general 
proof of the possession of a certain degree of qualification among the 
teachers, for he thought that this showed ingratitude towards the old 
teachers, who had given their services almost gratuitously to the land 
and people in bad times and who would now have to be dismissed. This 
objection was settled by a compromise, by which this class of teachers 
was allowed to continue in the " Outer " or "Boer Schools," at least if 
they were able to satisfy modest requirements. 

The third point against which President Kruger at first raised an ob- 
jection was the subsidy to the higher girls' schools. He feared that 
this would result in changes and revolutions in the life of the people, 

216 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

placed me for the third time at the head of the state, 
an association had been formed at Johannesburg 
which exercised a most disastrous influence upon the 

which had always considered that a woman's place was at home. But he 
gave way to his advisers, and, afterwards, it was he himself who recom- 
mended to the so-called Progressives the admission of clever girls into 
the State Gymnasium. And in 1894 he personally opened the State 
Girls' School at Pretoria with prayers and an address. The people was 
converted to these reforms at the same time as its President. 

Determined to make education as general as possible, he was at once 
prepared to agree to the proposals that in districts with a mixed popula- 
tion. State subsidies should also be allowed, under certain conditions, to 
those schools in which education was not given in Dutch. A law of his 
own proposing was passed, with this object, on the 1st of June 1893, and 
a few English schools and the flourishing German school developed un- 
der his protection at Johannesburg. And when the President saw that 
the English population made too little use of the advantages granted them 
and the political Opposition established an educational commission with 
an educational fund of £100,000 for the maintenance of schools conducted 
in an anti-national spirit, despite his objection, on principle, to state 
schools, he gave his consent to the erection of Uitlander schools at the 
cost of the state, to which the mixed inhabitants of the gold-fields could 
send their children either gratuitously or on payment of very small fees. 
The only duty prescribed to these schools was to give opportunities for 
instruction in the language of the country; and at the expiration of two 
years, there were twelve of these schools, with 49 teachers and 1,499 
children, each of whom cost the state £20 a year. In this way the Eng- 
lish enjoyed advantages superior to those of the whole population. The 
fact, moreover, that the President would never give up his principle that 
the Dutch language should be maintained as the one and only educational 
medium merely shows that he saw, as did others, the necessity of the 
preservation of the national tongue for the independent development and 
consolidation of a nation, especially such a nation as that of the Boers, 
which had to hold its ground in the midst of an overwhelming foreign 
population. 

Education made such great strides in the course of the next eight years 
that, at the Paris Exhibition of 1900, the commission received two grands 
prix: a distinction which is all the more deserved when one thinks of the 
many obstacles with which education in the South African Republic had 
to grapple, such as a scattered population, Kaffir wars, dearth of laborers, 
continuous droughts, the rinderpest and so on. — Note hy the Editor of the 
German Edition. 

217 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

fate of the Transvaal. This was the so-called 
" Transvaal National Union," which made it its 
business to keep the Johannesburg population in a 
state of constant ferment and to manufacture com- 
plaints against the Government. Every method of 
agitation was put into force by these gentry for the 
furtherance of their intrigues. Apparently they 
were agitating for the franchise; but their real ob- 
ject was a very different one, as will be seen. That 
Rhodes's influence was here, too, paramount was 
proved by later events. 

The seditious spirit which actuated the National 
Union stood clearly and distinctly revealed at the 
very first opportunity; and this came during the 
Kaffir War in the Blue Mountains. The Republic, 
at that time, had to contend against constant diffi- 
culties with the Kaffir tribes in the North. To-day 
it was this one, to-morrow that other, that assumed 
an insolent attitude towards the Government. At 
last, one of their chiefs, by name Malapoch, who 
lived in the Blue Mountains, behaved so outrageously 
that the Government was compelled to send a com- 
mando against him. His audacity had gone so far 
as to order a number of his subjects, who lived in 
the plains round about the Blue Mountains, to be 
murdered, because they had paid taxes to the Gov- 
ernment of the Republic in accordance with their 
lawful obligations. 

218 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

General Joubert collected the young men of Pre- 
toria for an expedition against Malapoch. These 
young men of course included many subjects of for- 
eign Powers, but all obeyed the field-cornet's sum- 
mons with the greatest alacrity, with the exception 
of the English. 

These, as "British subjects," thought themselves 
much too grand to fight for the despised Boers. The 
Enghsh clergy did all they could to stir up the minds 
of these young men by public addresses. At last, 
the field-cornet found himself compelled, in com- 
pliance with Article 5 of the Regulations of War, 
to arrest the recalcitrants. These lodged a complaint 
with the Chief Justice, and demanded that the field- 
cornet be ordered to leave them alone. The court, 
however, decided that they were obliged to serve, and 
so these fine young gentlemen were sent under a bur- 
gher escort to the commando. Meanwhile, the so- 
called National Union had not been idle, but made 
every possible attempt to harass the Government. 
The insolence of these people would be incompre- 
hensible, if it had not afterwards appeared who were 
behind them. The British Government took ofiicial 
notice of the occurrence and sent Sir Henry Loch 
to Pretoria to discuss the question with the Govern- 
ment of the Republic. 

In the meantime, the Volksraad had passed a res- 
olution by which any person not yet enjoying full 

219 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

burgher rights might be released from military ser- 
vice on the payment of a certain smn of money. 
Shortly afterwards, Sir Henry Loch came to Pre- 
toria. On his arrival, the EngHsh behaved in the 
most disorderly fashion and, as soon as the Governor 
and I were seated in the carriage, the Jingoes took 
out the horses and drew us to the Transvaal Hotel, 
singing the usual Enghsh satirical ditties as they did 
so. One of the ring-leaders jumped on the box wav- 
ing a great Union Jack. On arriving in front of the 
Transvaal Hotel, they stopped the carriage and read 
an address to Sir Henry Loch. A number of Trans- 
vaal burghers, seeing what was going on, drew the 
carriage, in which I had remained seated alone, to 
the Government Buildings. I need not say that this 
incident made a very bad impression on the minds of 
the burghers and added new fuel to the already ex- 
isting dislike of the EngHsh. The Volksraad was 
sitting at the time and passed a resolution asking the 
Government for an explanation why no measures 
were taken to prevent an exhibition so offensive to 
the people of the Republic. Soon after, a number 
of burghers assembled in the town, having come up 
determined to prevent a repetition of these insults. 

IVIeantime, the so-called National Union continued 
their work. They invited Sir Henry Loch to visit 
Johannesburg; for they were fully aware that it 
would be much easier to provoke a riot there than 

220 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

at Pretoria. What they were working for was in- 
tervention from England. I was fully alive to the 
difficulties which must of necessity arise from Sir 
Henry Loch's visit to Johamiesburg, and advised 
him most earnestly not to go. I even went so far 
as to say to him, in private conversation, that the re- 
sponsibihty, should he accept the invitation, must 
rest entirely with him. He thereupon abandoned his 
proposed visit to Johannesburg. His whole public 
attitude was, in fact, perfectly correct. But how did 
he act in secret? When the National Union dis- 
covered that the visit to Johannesbiu'g was not to 
take place, they sent some of their members, includ- 
ing Tudhope and Leonard, to Pretoria, with an 
address to Sir Henry Loch. The address con- 
tained the most insulting accusations against the 
Government and the Volksraad. But this caused 
no surprise to those who knew its source. In 
public. Sir Henry Loch advised the deputation 
to carry their complaints quietly before the Volks- 
raad. In secret, he asked them how many rifles and 
how much ammunition they had at Johannesburg, 
and how long they could hold out against the Gov- 
ernment, until he was able to come to their assistance 
with EngHsh troops from outside. 

How typically English was this conduct on the 
part of a high-placed British official! It is charac- 
teristic of the entire Enghsh policy in South Africa. 

221 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Lies, treachery, intrigues and secret instigations 
against the Government of the Republic: these have 
always been distinguishing marks of English politics, 
which found their final goal in this present cruel war. 
If, encouraged by the question, which amounted al- 
most to a suggestion, the Johannesburgers did not 
rise there and then, this is owing only to the fact that 
they were without rifles and ammunition. But it is 
not difficult to trace the consequences of this advice 
in the events which, soon afterwards, ensued. 

I have been obliged to anticipate, in order to give 
a connected picture of the nature and aims of the 
National Union; but events of great importance in 
foreign politics had taken place in the meantime. In 
1893, the second Swaziland Convention was con- 
cluded. In this connection, a conference was held 
at Colesberg between the High Commissioner and 
myself: it led to no result, but was followed by a 
second conference at Pretoria. Here came Sir 
Henry Loch, with his wife, his two daughters and a 
numerous staff, and was given a brilliant reception. 
Judging by the festivities held in Sir Henry's honor, 
an uninitiated observer would have thought that a 
solemn welcome was being offered to a true friend 
and ally of the Republic. The arrangement which 
was soon made was not of a nature to give rise to 
much rejoicing; but it was the best we could obtain. 
The chief points were : 

222 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

The Republic received the right to conclude a 
treaty with the Queen of the Swazis by which the su- 
zerainty and right of administration passed to the 
Republic, while the internal affairs of the Kaffirs 
were left to the Queen and her council, so that Swazi- 
land could not be considered to form a part of the 
Republic. 

All the white male inhabitants of the country were 
to obtain full burgher rights in the Republic, pro- 
vided that they applied for them within six months. 

The Dutch and Enghsh languages were to enjoy 
equal rights in the law-courts. 

The South African RepubHc confirmed her renun- 
ciation, already conceded in the first Swaziland Con- 
vention, of her claims on certain districts in the north 
and north-west of the country. 

This arrangement was not to become valid imtil 
the Swazi queen and her council gave their consent. 

A strong opposition now sprang up among the 
Swazis against our taking possession of their coun- 
try, as we were to do in accordance with the conven- 
tion. This opposition was provoked and strength- 
ened by all sorts of English Jingoes and adventurers, 
including a certain Hulett, who had come from 
T^atal. The latter persuaded the Swazis to send a 
deputation to England, to protest against the trans- 
fer of their country into the hands of the RepubHc. 
The deputation achieved no result. Since, however, 

223 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

nothing but feuds and quarrels arose in Swaziland 
and since, under existing conditions, it was impos- 
sible for the South African Republic to suppress 
them, an unbearable situation arose and a new meet- 
ing accordingly took place between Sir Henry Loch 
and myself at Volksrust, in 1894, at which a new, 
or third, Swaziland Convention was concluded, giv- 
ing the Republic the right to take over Swaziland, 
without, however, making it an integral portion of 
this country. But for this restriction, Swaziland now 
practically formed part of the Republic. This con- 
vention was accepted by the Volksraad in an extraor- 
dinary session, in 1895, and thus this troublesome 
matter was settled. 

We had hardly time to breathe after these diffi- 
culties about the native territories, when England 
suddenly annexed Sambaanland and Umbigesaland. 
The Republic had long had treaties of friendship 
with both these countries and, during the time of the 
Swaziland negotiations, it had always been taken for 
granted that the Republic would later, as soon as 
the Swaziland question was settled, put forward her 
claims over the two countries and treat with England 
for their annexation. N^evertheless, as soon as the 
Volksraad had ratified the Swaziland Convention, in 
1895, England suddenly annexed the territories in 
question, although she had no more claim upon them 
than upon the moon. The object of this proceeding 

224 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

can only have been to vex and harass the Republic ; 
for, by acting as she did, England cut off the Trans- 
vaal's last outlet to the sea, an outlet which England 
did not require. It goes without saying that the Re- 
public protested against the annexation; but Eng- 
land did not trouble herself about that. 

In 1895, one of my fondest wishes was at last ef- 
fected. The railway to Delagoa Bay was solemnly 
opened at Pretoria. After many difficulties, the Hne 
had at last been completed, thanks to the industry of 
the Netherlands South African Railway Company. 
All the governments of South Africa were repre- 
sented at the inauguration, and the Volksraad voted 
£20,000 to enable the burghers who cared to avail 
themselves of this privilege to travel to Delagoa Bay 
and inspect the whole work. Thousands of burghers 
were thus enabled to become acquainted with the new 
enterprise and to appreciate its value. 

This railway changed the whole internal situation 
in the Transvaal. Until that time, the Cape Railway 
had enjoyed a monopoly, so to speak, of the Johan- 
nesburg traffic. This was now altered. In order to 
facilitate friendly competition and to secure an ade- 
quate proportion of the profits on the railway traffic 
to the largest city in the Republic, the Government 
proposed that the profits on the joint goods and pas- 
senger traffic should be divided in equal shares be- 
tween the three States whose railway-lines ran to 
15 225 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Pretoria. These three were Cape Colony, 1^3'atal, and 
the Transvaal. Cecil Rhodes, who was then for the 
second time Premier of Cape Colony, and his ad- 
visers thought differently. They asked for 50 per 
cent, for Cape Colony, leaving the remaining 50 per 
cent, to be divided between Natal and the Transvaal. 
The Government of the Republic would not hear of 
this proposal, and a tariff war ensued. 

The Cape Government lowered their tariff as far 
as Vereeniging, the frontier station between the 
Orange Free State and the Transvaal (the Free 
State railways were at that time still under the con- 
trol of the Cape Government) . The South African 
Railway, on the other hand, raised its tariff on its 
own portion of the line, running from Vereeniging 
to Johannesburg, in order to neutrahze the reduction 
in prices on the other portion. The Cape Govern- 
ment now thought out a new plan. In order to avoid 
sending their goods over the expensive stretch of 
line, they had them unloaded at Viljoensdrift, in 
order to convey them thence to Johannesburg in ox- 
wagons. Now the customs laws of the Repubhc con- 
tained a clause by virtue of which the President was 
enabled to proclaim certain places on the frontiers 
as " import ports " ; while no goods could be imported 
except at places thus proclaimed. When, therefore, 
the Cape Government caused their goods to be car- 
ried in ox-wagons, the Government of the Repubhc 

226 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

(whose interests coincided with those of the jSTether- 
lands South African Railway Company, as they had 
guaranteed the latter 's profits) determined to close 
the existing " import ports," really fords, or " drifts," 
to goods from over the seas. The Government proc- 
lamation was directed only against goods from over 
the seas, so as not to injure the home trade of the 
Orange Free State and Cape Colony. 

What did Rhodes and his Government now do? 
They asserted that the London Convention had been 
violated. This Convention contained a clause ac- 
cording to which no article coming from any portion 
of the British Empire could be excluded, unless the 
importation of that same article from any other 
country was also forbidden. The Republic, there- 
fore, had violated the Convention, inasmuch as she 
had favored Cape Colony, a British possession, and 
the Orange Free State, her sister state, above the 
countries over the seas. She must now either with- 
draw her decision, or else resort to the odious measure 
of forbidding the entire importation. Rhodes ad- 
dressed his complaint to the British Government. A 
general election had recently taken place in England, 
and the same Government was in power that held 
office at the time of the late war. Mr. Chamberlain 
was a member of this Government and was, of course, 
at once prepared to send the Republic an ultimatum. 
He stipulated, however, that, if the ultimatum led 

227 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEE 

to a war. Cape Colony should bear half the cost, raise 
a force of auxiliaries and lend her railway for the 
free carriage of troops. To the shame be it spoken 
of the Afrikanders who had seats in the Ministry, 
they agreed to this suggestion forthwith. The Re- 
public received her ultimatum and was, of course, 
obliged to give way and to undertake not to close 
the drifts again. 

The most striking event during my third presi- 
dency was Dr. Jameson's filibustering expedition, an 
enterprise of which the responsibility does not rest 
with Dr. Jameson. It is true that Mr. Chamberlain, 
at the time of the raid, declared that he knew nothing 
of the whole conspiracy. Later, however, it was 
shown that the British Government, or at least the 
Colonial Secretary, was fully informed of Cecil 
Rhodes's plans and intrigues, which resulted in Jame- 
son's disgraceful raid. Rhodes had long entertained 
the project of making himself master of the Repub- 
lic in one way or another; and he devoted his money, 
his influence and his position as Premier of Cape 
Colony to this object. The National Union, of 
which I have already spoken, was employed by him 
to keep men's minds at Joharmesbui'g in a constant 
state of ferment, and it soon became his chief tool in 
the conspu'acy against the existence of the country. 
Tlirough his instrumentahty, arms and ammunition 
were secretly smuggled into Johannesburg and con- 

228 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

cealed in the Simmer-and-Jack Mine, in which he 
was the largest shareholder. Rhodes was aware that 
Johannesburg alone was not able to start a revo- 
lution with any chance of success. He had therefore 
to try to obtain a place of his own, on the frontiers of 
the Republic, where he could collect troops in sup- 
port of a rising. With this object, with the aid of 
his factotum. Dr. Rutherfoord Harris, and a lady 
journalist called Flora Shaw, he opened negotiations 
with the British Government in order to extend the 
territory of the Chartered Company, so as to include 
the necessary strategic positions. The telegrams ex- 
changed between the above-named persons during 
the negotiations with the British Government show 
that Mr. Chamberlain knew all about the matter. 
One of Miss Shaw's telegrams to Rhodes ended with 
the words : 

Chamberlain sound in case of interference European Powers, 
but have special reasons to believe wishes you must do it im- 
mediately. 

Add to this the following telegram from Rhodes 
to Miss Flora Shaw: 

Inform Chamberlain that I shall get through all right;, if he 
supports me, but he must not send cables like he sent to the 
High Commissioner in South Africa. To-day the crux is I 
shall win and South Africa will belong to England. 

And again: 

Unless you can make Chamberlain instruct the High Com- 
missioner to proceed at once to Johannesburg, the whole posi- 

229 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

tion is lost. High Commissioner would receive splendid re- 
ception and still turn position to England's advantage, but must 
be instructed by cable immediately. The instructions must be 
specific, as he is weak and will take no responsibility. 

It must be remembered, moreover, that the British 
Govermnent laid only a portion of the telegrams 
before the so-called Select Parliamentary Comjnit- 
tee on British South African Affairs, and probably 
kept back those which were most compromising. 
Why should this be done when an inquiry is insti- 
tuted to discover the truth? Is it not the natural con- 
clusion that Chamberlain was equally guilty with 
Rhodes? However, no one can seriously deny that 
the above-mentioned published telegrams clearly 
prove Mr. Chamberlain's complicity in the plot. 

As soon as Rhodes was sure of obtaining the de- 
sired strip of land from the British Government, he 
at once began to take measures to collect the troops 
of the South African Police at that point and to 
equip them with horses and materials of war so that 
they might be ready to invade the Republic as soon as 
things at Johannesburg were ripe for the attack. 
Meanwhile, he had entered into correspondence with 
the leaders of the National Union and sent his bro- 
ther. Colonel Rhodes, to Johannesburg to work in 
his interest and represent him. Colonel Rhodes had 
his unlimited authority to spend as much money as 
he considered necessary. Mr. Lionel Phillips, one of 

230 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

the conspirators, had gone to Cape Town, presum- 
ably to discuss the details with Rhodes in person. 
He returned suddenly, on the pretext of opening 
the new buildings of the Chamber of Mines, of 
which he was chairman. The buildings, however, 
were not even finished, and the opening was only an 
excuse to give Mr. Phillips the opportunity of mak- 
ing a political speech. It took place at the end of 
November, and Phillips delivered a speech full of 
violent attacks upon the Government. Some time 
earlier, one or two members of the National Union 
had gone to Cape Town to discuss the execution of 
the plan. In accordance with what was then ar- 
ranged. Dr. Jameson came to Johannesburg at the 
end of November to concert the necessary measures 
with the leaders of the Union. On this occasion, he 
asked them to give him a letter in which they ap- 
pealed to him for his assistance and which he could 
use at any time as an excuse for an invasion. The 
letter contained the statement that a collision was 
imminent between the Uitlanders and the Govern- 
ment and that the women and children and private 
property at Johannesburg were in danger. This 
letter, which was signed by Mr. Charles Leonard, 
Colonel Frank Rhodes, Messrs. Lionel Phillips, J. 
Hays Hammond and Farrar, was left undated, so 
that Jameson might be able to make use of it at 
any time. In the meanwhile, the inhabitants of Jo- 

231 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

hannesburg were incited in every possible manner 
by the Rhodes press in order artfully to prepare the 
way for an outbreak. Towards the end of Decem- 
ber 1895, Leonard, as chairman of the National 
Union, issued a long manifesto raising a series of 
accusations against the Government. Everything 
that could serve to excite men's minds against the Re- 
public was dragged in. Of course, the franchise 
question was one of the main grievances, although 
Lionel Phillips, who was also a leading member of 
the Union, had not long before written to his part- 
ner in London, a German Jew called Beit, who was 
closely connected with Rhodes, that " we do not care 
a fig for the franchise." 

Just when the ferment at Johannesburg was at 
its height, I returned to Pretoria from my usual an- 
nual tour of the districts, and it was then that, in 
reply to an address in which the burghers pressed 
for the punishment of the rebellious element, I used 
the words: 

" You must give the tortoise time to put out its 
head before you can catch hold of it." 

An attempt has been made to prove from these 
words that I knew of the preparations for the Jame- 
son Raid, and that by the tortoise I meant Jameson. 
But this statement is quite imfounded. Neither I 
nor any of the Transvaal authorities at that time 
thought such a deed possible, much less expected it. 

232 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

It is true that horses, provisions and fodder were be- 
ing bought up by the English even in the Republic ; 
but the English stated that the assembling of the 
police on the western frontier of the South African 
Republic was intended for an expedition against the 
Kaffirs, particularly against the Chief Linchwe. And 
the burghers, therefore, entertained so little suspi- 
cion that they themselves assisted in the purchase of 
the military stores and in conveying the goods to all 
the places which afterwards represented roadside 
stations for Jameson's ride from Kimberley to near 
Krugersdorp. I myself had, but a short while be- 
fore, offered the British High Commissioner, Sir 
Hercules Robinson, the assistance of the Republic 
for the protection of the women and children against 
the Matabele, who were giving trouble to the Eng- 
lish, and Sir Hercules had replied thanking me for 
my offer, but saying that our assistance would not 
be needed for the present. If I had had the smallest 
inkling of Jameson's plan, I should assuredly not 
have allowed him to push so far into the Republic. 
In the days when the troops were being collected for 
the Jameson Raid, General Joubert, the Comman- 
der-in-chief of the Boer forces, was not even at Pre- 
toria, but on his farm in the Wakkerstroom district, 
and he did not return to Pretoria until a couple of 
days before the raid. 

What I meant by the tortoise was the National 

233 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Union, which was continually abusing the Govern- 
ment and threatening to resort to force in order to 
obtain the removal of its grievances. I intended to 
convey that we must allow the movement quietly to 
take its course, until it revealed its true character and 
showed itself so undoubtedly guilty that the Gov- 
ernment could punish the leading members, the real 
rebels, for high treason. Had those men been ar- 
rested earlier, they could still have tried to deny 
their misconduct and we should then, perhaps, have 
been unable to convince the world of their guilt. 

Towards the end of December 1895, the state of 
affairs at Johannesburg was such that thousands left 
the town and fled for safety to the coast, while the 
National Union, which henceforth adopted the name 
of the Reform Committee, raised corps of volunteers 
to whom it distributed arms and ammunition. In 
order to avoid a collision and prevent bloodshed, the 
Government resolved to confine the police to bar- 
racks. We did not look upon the rebellion as serious, 
since it did not originate with the people, but was 
artificially manufactured from above by intriguers. 
The whole thing would have presented a farcical 
spectacle, if the results had been less serious. The 
only man among the so-called Reformers who under- 
stood his business was Colonel Rhodes. All the 
others were theatrical revolutionaries.* 

1 It has been related that the President kept his horse saddled in his 
stable and his rifle loaded by his bed-side during the time of the Jameson 

234 



KRUGEK'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

I received different deputations from Johannes- 
burg which made it clear that a large number of the 
inhabitants did not wish to have anything to do with 
the insurrection. I promised one of these deputa- 
tions that I would meet the Uitlanders in the matter 
of certain grievances and propose a general grant 
of the franchise, and I also issued a proclamation in 
which I declared that the rioters formed only a small 
proportion of the population of Johannesburg, and 
expressed my confidence that the law-abiding in- 
habitants would support the Government in its 
endeavors to maintain law and order. 

This injunction was issued on the 30th of Decem- 
ber 1895. On the same day, however, General Jou- 
bert received a telegram from Mr. Marais, Commis- 
sioner of Mines at Ottoshoop, informing him that 
a commando of 800 of the Chartered Company's 
troops, with Maxims and guns, had gone past, at 
half -past five that morning, in the direction of Jo- 
hannesburg, and that the telegraph wire between 
Malmanie, Zeerust, and Lichtenburg had been cut. 

General Joubert immediately dispatched telegrams 
to the different commandants, and first to those of 
Rustenburg, Krugersdorp, and Potchefstroom, ac- 
quainting them with these reports and charging them 

Raid. Not a word of this is true, except in so far that some friends ad- 
vised him to leave Pretoria because of the danger of an attack, whereupon 
he replied : 

"If it comes to that, I shall take my horse and my gun and join my 
commando." — Note hy the Editoi^ of the German Edition. 

235 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

at once to summon the burghers and stop the in- 
vaders. Meanwhile, the Government had appointed 
a committee at Johannesburg to maintain order. It 
is certainly due to the tact displayed by this commit- 
tee that no bloodshed occurred. The Reformers now 
resolved to send a deputation to Pretoria to confer 
with the Government. They were received, on be- 
half of the Government, by General Kock and 
Judges Kotze and Ameshoff , and demanded that Dr. 
Jameson should be allowed to enter Johannesburg, 
in which case they would make themselves respon- 
sible for his peaceful departure from the town and 
his return across the frontier. In the meanwhile, 
the High Commissioner, Sir Hercules Robinson^ 
who had succeeded Sir Henry Loch at the end of 
1895, offered his friendly mediation and proposed to 
come to Pretoria in order to prevent bloodshed. An 
answer was, therefore, given to the deputation to 
the effect that, pending the arrival of the High Com- 
missioner, the Government would take no measures 
against Johannesburg, provided the town conducted 
itself quietly. 

Meantime, Dr. Jameson had advanced with the 
greatest rapidity in the direction of Johannesburg. 
The High Commissioner issued a proclamation call- 
ing upon Dr. Jameson and all his companions to 
withdraw across the frontier (this proclamation was 
shortly followed by Cecil Rhodes's resignation of the 

236 



KRUGER'S THIKD PKESIDENCY 

premiership of Cape Colony). The proclamation, 
together with a letter from Sir Jacobus De Wet, the 
British Agent at Pretoria, was carried to Dr. Jame- 
son hj Ben Bouwer, a Transvaal burgher. Dr. 
Jameson, however, took not the shghtest notice of it. 
Lieutenant Eloff, of the Krugersdorp pohce, who 
rode out to meet him and to charge him to turn back, 
was taken prisoner by his orders. A number of 
Transvaal burghers, however, under Commandants 
Malan, Potgieter and Cronje had outstripped Jame- 
son and taken up their stand on the hills near Kru- 
gersdorp. Jameson at once turned the fire of his 
gims on the burghers' positions; but, as soon as his 
troops attempted a charge, they were driven back 
with loss. When Dr. Jameson saw that he could not 
get through, he faced about to the right, in order to 
try to turn the Boer position. He was stopped, 
however, during the night by Field-cornet D. Fou- 
che, and the next morning, when he moved still fur- 
ther to the right, he came up against Cronje's bur- 
ghers, at Doornkop, who compelled him to sui'render 
after a short engagement. 

It has been stated that Dr. Jameson surrendered 
on condition that his life and the hves of his men 
should be spared. Commandant Cronje had, in fact, 
in a note to Sir John Willoughby, the officer in com- 
mand of Jameson's troops, informed him that he 
would spare their lives on the understanding that they 

237 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

surrendered with all that they had with them and 
paid the expenses entailed upon the South African 
Republic. But, while Commandant Cronje was still 
in conversation with Dr. Jameson, Commandant 
Malan, of Rustenburg, approached, asked what was 
being done and, when he heard the conditions, said 
to Cronje: 

"We cannot make conditions of any kind; that 
is a matter for the Government at Pretoria." 

Cronje agreed, and thereupon Commandant Ma- 
lan caused Dr. Jameson to be informed, in English, 
that he must clearly understand that what Cronje 
had said was that the prisoners' lives were only guar- 
anteed as far as Pretoria, where they would be 
handed over to the Commandant General. 

" At this moment," he continued, " we cannot 
make any final conditions; those must be left to the 
Government." 

Jameson thereupon bowed and said: 

" I accept your conditions." 

It was not till that moment that the surrender was 
completed and Dr. Jameson and his men disarmed 
and taken to Pretoria. 

In the meantime, the High Commissioner had ar- 
rived and at once had an interview with myself and 
my advisers. After expressing his regret at what 
had happened, he immediately began to speak of the 
grievances of the Uitlanders and of other necessary 

238 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

reforms. I cut him short at once, however, by point- 
ing out to him that this was not the time to speak of 
those matters, and that the only questions that could 
now be discussed were those of the measures to be 
taken in order to avoid further bloodshed,^ and how 
Johannesburg should be made give up its arms. The 
High Commissioner asked: 

" On what conditions is Johannesburg to give up 
its arms? " 

I rephed: 

" Unconditionally." 

And, when the High Commissioner continued to 
hesitate and to raise difficulties against my demand, 
I added: 

" I will give Johannesburg twenty-four hours in 
which to surrender unconditionally. Otherwise, I 
shall compel the town to do so by force." 

Sir Hercules could obtain no concession. I con- 
tinued inexorable, and the interview ended. 

The burghers and their commandants were in a 
condition of extreme excitement. It is easily under- 
stood that, after being plagued and provoked for so 

1 Sir Hercules had asked whether he might come to help to bring about 
a peaceful settlement of the Jameson business, and he received a reply 
saymg: 

"Yes, come, you can perhaps prevent bloodshed." 

He took this to mean that he might do something to prevent the insur- 
gents from being shot; but when he was told that he could advise the 
Johannesburgers to surrender and thus prevent bloodshed, he was no longer 
so assiduous with his offer. — Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

239 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

many years by the National Union, they were not in 
the mood to allow Jameson and the Johannesburg 
iii'e-brands to go iinpmiished. The following will 
serve as an instance of the spirit that prevailed among 
the burghers : 

A conmiandant and some 400 burghers, who were 
on their way to stop Jameson, when the latter had 
not yet surrendered, passed through Pretoria and 
took the opportunity of calling on me to bid me good- 
day. I went out to thank the burghers, when the 
commandant addressed me in these words: 

" President, we have come to greet you, and at 
the same time to inform you that, when we have cap- 
tured Jameson, we intend to march straight on to 
Johannesburg and to shoot down that den with 
all the rebels in it. They have provoked us long 
enough." 

I replied : 

" No, brother, you must not speak like that. Re- 
member, there are thousands of innocent and loyal 
people at Johannesburg, and the others have been 
for the most part misled. We must not be re- 
vengeful; what would be the result of such a 
step? " 

The commandant answered: 

" No, President, you speak in vain. What is the 
use of clemency? It is only because we have shown 
the rebels clemency too long that they have now gone 

240 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

so far. My burghers and I are determined to put 
an end to this sedition for good and all." 

I thereupon lost my temper, or, at least, pretended 
to do so, and said: 

" Very well, if you wiU not listen to me, you can 
depose me from the presidency and govern the coun- 
try after your own fashion." 

The commandant now calmed down and said : 

" No, President, I did not mean that ; we are quite 
willing to hsten to you, but we have been terribly pro- 
voked." 

I too answered more calmly : 

" Well, if you will listen to me, do what I say and 
leave the rest to me." 

At the meeting of commandants which, together 
with the Executive Raad, was to decide Jameson's 
fate, I had a hard battle to fight. My inten- 
tion, which had already been approved by the Exec- 
utive Raad, was to hand over Jameson and his com- 
panions to the British Government, in order that the 
criminals might be punished by their own Govern- 
ment according to their own laws. But the com- 
mandants would not hear of this, and it was only 
after Messrs. Fischer and Kleynveld, of the Orange 
Free State,^ had also advised them to follow my 

1 Mr. Fischer is the gentleman who was afterwards dispatched as one of 
the delegates to Europe. He and Mr. Kleynveld had been sent by the 
Orange Free State to see if it was necessary for that state to come to the 
assistance of the Republic in accordance with her obligations. — Note hy the 
Editor of the German Edition. 

16 241 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

wishes that I succeeded in obtaining their consent 
to leave this matter to the Government. 

When the High Commissioner saw that I insisted 
on the miconditional surrender of Johannesburg, he 
instructed Sir Jacobus De Wet to telegraph to that 
effect to the Reform Committee. It is hardly nec- 
essary to say that they compHed before the twenty- 
four hours had expired, for, with the exception of 
Colonel Rhodes and perhaps one or two more, there 
was not one among the conspirators but would have 
taken to his heels as soon as the first shot was fired. 
They had wooed and organized rebelHon only in the 
hope that England would pull the chestnuts out of 
the fire for them. They did not tliink of endanger- 
ing their fives for the sake of a matter for which one 
of their principal members had declared, but a fittle 
while before, that he " did not care a fig." 

Meanwhile the Government had informed the 
High Commissioner that it intended to hand over 
Jameson and his men to the British Government so 
that they might be brought to justice in England. 
Mr. Chamberlain telegraphed to me to thank me, 
in the name of Her Majesty, for my magnanimous 
act. Subsequent events have shown the depth of 
tliis gratitude and the way in which England has re- 
warded my magnanimity. 

Johannesburg gave up its arms, but in much 
smaller quantities than was expected. Only some 

242 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

1800 rifles and three damaged Maxims were handed 
in. Soon after. Dr. Jameson and his followers were 
dehvered to the Governor of N^atal, who sent them 
to England. The rank and file were at once set at 
liberty by the British Government. Jameson and 
a few of the other officers received short terms of 
imprisonment and were released before the expira- 
tion of their sentence. 

On the 9th of January, the Reformers were ar- 
rested in their homes, or at their clubs, and taken to 
Pretoria. On the 10th, I issued a proclamation to 
the inhabitants of Johannesburg in which I declared 
that I only looked upon a small number of crafty 
men within and without Johannesburg as the con- 
spirators, and pointed out that the plot might have 
led to fearful disasters. I promised to confer a mu- 
nicipahty upon Johannesburg, and ended by appeal- 
ing to the inhabitants to enable me to appear before 
the Volksraad with the motto, " Forgive and for- 
get." 

It is not necessary to enter into details concerning 
the trial of the conspirators. The Government ap- 
phed to the Orange Free State to allow Judge Gre- 
gorowski to preside over the trial. The object of 
this request, which was readily granted, was to ob- 
tain a judge who was outside the quarrel and who 
could not be regarded as in any way prejudiced 
against the Reformers. Most of them escaped with 

243 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

imprisonment or fines : only the four leaders, Messrs. 
Lionel Phillips, Farrar, Hammond, and Colonel 
Rhodes, were condemned to death ; but this sentence 
was commuted by the Executive Raad to a fine of 
£25,000 apiece. Thus ended the first act of the 
drama of which the last act has just been finished 
on the blood-stained plains of South Africa. 

Before closing this chapter, mention should be 
made of the great calamity with which Johannes- 
burg was afflicted, on the 19th of February, 1896, by 
the explosion of a number of trucks loaded with dy- 
namite. A portion of the suburbs of Jorisburg and 
Braamf ontein was destroyed, very many persons were 
killed and wounded, and hundreds were rendered 
homeless. The Uitlanders showed their sympathy 
with the victims by subscribing a sum of about 
£70,000 within two days. To this the Government 
added a gift of £25,000. I repaired without delay 
to Johannesburg, visited the wounded in the hospital 
and praised the sympathy displayed in this matter 
by the Uitlanders, which it cheered my heart to see. 
I reminded them of the words of the Gospel: 
" Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain 
mercy." 

And so the attempt upon the independence of the 
Republic failed. But now Mr. Chamberlain was to 
set to work to try whether he could not be more suc- 

244 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

cessful. With his assistance, Jameson's Raid was to 
be replaced by a gigantic British Raid. 

His first step was to invite me to come to Eng- 
land to confer on Transvaal matters, while he began 
by declaring that he was not prepared to discuss Ar- 
ticle 4 of the London Convention, the only article 
which still in any way restricted the foreign relations 
of the South African Republic. One would really 
think, to judge from this invitation, that it was the 
Repubhc and not England that had to make amends. 

At the same time, Mr. Chamberlain sent off an- 
other dispatch, in which he proposed that a sort of 
Home Rule should be granted to Johannesburg, and 
he pubhshed this dispatch in the London official press 
before I had received it. When one reflects that it 
was the very question of Home Rule for Ireland that 
caused Mr. Chamberlain to withdraw from Glad- 
stone's party and barter his Radicahsm for his pres- 
ent Jingoism, one must stand astoimded at the 
effrontery of his proposal, especially under the exist- 
ing circumstances. 

The Government of the South African Repubhc 
at first received only a short excerpt from the dis- 
patch, embracing the principal points, whereas the 
whole text had already been pubhshed in the London 
official press, and to this it sent the reply, in brief, 
that it was undesirable and inadvisable to give pre- 

245 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEH 

vious publicity to views which the British Govern- 
ment thought fit to adopt towards the Repubhc, 
adding that the Repubhc could not permit any inter- 
ference in her internal aif airs. This reply was now 
also at once published in the Staatscourant of the 
South African Republic. Shortly after its receipt, 
Mr. Chamberlain dispatched a telegram in which he 
said that, if his proposal was not acceptable to the 
parties concerned, he would not insist upon it. There- 
( upon I telegraphed the conditions upon which I 
would be willing to come to England. The chief 
point was the substitution of a treaty of peace, com- 
merce, and amity for the London Convention. Into 
this Mr. Chamberlain refused to enter. He con- 
tinued to speak of admitted grievances which must 
be removed, as that was a matter of the highest im- 
portance to England as the paramount power in 
South Africa, stating, furthermore, that, even if the 
London Convention was replaced by another. Ar- 
ticle 4 of that Convention must, in any case, be in- 
cluded in the new agreement. Where, then, would 
have been the sense of undertaking that troublesome 
journey? And what would have been the use of sub- 
stituting a new convention for the old one, if the 
only article by which the independence of the Re- 
pubhc was in any way restricted was to be included? 
Mr. Chamberlain, seeing that he could not induce 
me to visit England without giving some guarantee 

246 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

that my journey would not be futile, withdrew his 
invitation. 

Meanwhile, it had become evident to the Govern- 
ment that it must prepare for possible events, and 
consequently a commencement was made in the pur- 
chase of ammunition, rifles, and guns. This was 
the more necessary inasmuch as, at the time of the 
Jameson Raid, the Repubhc was practically de- 
fenceless. The burghers, at that time, had none but 
Martini-Henry rifles and many did not possess a rifle 
at all. There was not sufiicient ammunition to wage 
war for a fortnight. It must be added that, by the 
law of the land, every burgher was bound to be 
armed ; and, when it appeared, on the occasion of the 
Jameson Raid, how sadly this duty had been neg- 
lected, the Government took the necessary mea- 
sures, but no more, for the proper arming of the 
burghers, in order that they might be ready to pro- 
tect themselves against further filibustering raids. 

Still greater supphes of anmiunition, rifles and 
guns were ordered after the investigation of the so- 
called South African Committee had taken place 
in London, because matters then came to light which 
showed that Mr. Chamberlain was not so innocent of 
the Raid as he represented. This is proved by the 
telegrams which I have already quoted and which 
were laid before the committee, and still more by 
those which were deliberately kept back, while, 

247 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

shortly after the mvestigation, Mr. Chamberlain de- 
clared in the House of Commons that Rhodes was 
a man of honor, and that there existed nothing which 
affected Rhodes's personal position as such. It was 
impossible to avoid drawing the conclusion that INIr. 
Chamberlain was Rhodes's accomphce, and that he 
now publicly defended Rhodes because he feared lest 
the latter should make statements which would be 
anytliing but pleasant hearing for the Colonial Secre- 
tary. This, at least, was the view taken of the matter 
in the Republic; and it was confirmed in this view 
by the fact that Dr. Jameson was released from 
prison on accomit of illness and recovered his health 
immediately afterwards. 

In view of these facts, can the Government of the 
South African Repubhc be blamed for making prep- 
arations, so that it might not fall a prey to Eng- 
land without striking a blow? Xay, more ; was it not 
her bounden duty to take care, as she did, that the 
country was placed on a defensive footing? Yet 
this is the action which was constantly thi^own in my 
face, by way of reproach, by the Enghsh ministers 
and the EngHsh press, and which they afterwards 
quoted in order to justify their mi just war. 

Shortly after the closmg of the South African 
Committee, ]Mr. Chamberlain began his uninter- 
rupted series of dispatches, which continued until the 
war broke out, and which had no other object than to 
embitter the British people against the Repubhc and 

248 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

to make them believe that it was constantly sinning 
against England and systematically violating the 
London Convention. Thus, for instance, in the early 
part of 1897, he sent a dispatch in which he declared 
that the Republic had broken the London Conven- 
tion by the following acts: by joining the Geneva 
Convention; by the Press Law; the Immigration 
Law; the conclusion of an extradition treaty with 
Portugal, etc. He based his contentions particularly 
on the oft-quoted Article 4 of the Convention,^ which 
lays down that no treaty shall be in force until the 
same has been approved by the British Govern- 
ment. 

Mr. Chamberlain now contended that the inten- 
tion of this article was that, as soon as a treaty was 
drawn up (and therefore before its completion), a 
copy must be dehvered to Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment, whereas the Government of the South African 
Republic maintained that this was not to be done 
until after the treaty was finally settled, and based 
its contention upon the words, "Upon its comple- 
tion," which occur in the article. The Government, 

1 This article 4 reads as follows : 

"The South African Republic will conclude no treaty or engagement 
with any State or nation other than the Orange Free State, nor with any 
native tribe to the eastward or westward of the Republic, until the same 
has been approved by Her Majesty the Queen. 

" Such approval shall be considered to have been granted if Her Ma- 
jesty's Government shall not, within six months after receiving a copy of 
such treaty (which shall be delivered to them immediately upon its com- 
pletion), have notified that the conclusion of such treaty is in conflict with 
the interests of Great Britain or of any of Her Majesty's possessions in 
South Africa." — Note hy the Editor of the German Edition. 

249 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

therefore, in its reply, laid stress upon the fact that it 
did not agree with Mr. Chamherlain's opinion, and 
suggested that, in view of the difference that ex- 
isted as to this point, it would be best to submit the 
matter to an impartial arbitrator. To this Mr. Cham- 
berlain rephed that England was the suzerain of the 
South African Republic and, in this quality, could 
not consent to refer a difference to arbitration. 

It is unnecessary to say that this reply of Mr. 
Chamberlain's was in the highest degree vexatious 
to the Government of the Republic. For what other 
purpose than to obtain the abolition of the suzerainty 
had we made the journey to London in 1883 and 
endeavored to secure a new convention? And, since 
the Convention of 1884, no one had entertained the 
very slightest doubt but that the suzerainty was an- 
nulled. Even Sir Hercules Robinson, who was him- 
self one of the authors of the Convention of 1884, 
declared in an interview with a journalist ^ that there 
was no question but that the suzerainty had been 
abolished by the Convention of 1884. In his greatly- 
praised reply of the 16th of April, 1898, Dr. Leyds 
irrefutably estabhshed this fact. He was able, more- 
over to quote a dispatch of Lord Derby's, of the 15th 
of February, 1884, in which the then Secretary for 
the Colonies enclosed a draft of a new convention 

^ Mr. Frank Harris, at that time editor of the Saturday Review. 
Note by the Editor of the German Edition. 

250 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

intended to replace the Convention of Pretoria. 
This draft commences with a reprint of the preamble 
of the Convention of 1881, followed by that of the 
Convention of 1884 and headed by the following 
note: 

"The words and paragraphs bracketed or printed in italics 
are proposed to he inserted, those rvithin a black line are pro- 
posed to be omitted." 

And now the whole preamble of 1881 is contained 
within a black line; moreover, the words " subject to 
the suzerainty of Her Majesty, her Heirs and Suc- 
cessors " had been struck out by Lord Derby. It 
was especially important to prove that the preamble 
of the Convention of 1881, in wliich the suzerainty 
was mentioned, had lapsed, because Mr. Chamberlain 
contended that this preamble still existed and con- 
tinued in force. In addition to what has been shown 
above, that this preamble was contained within brack- 
ets and had therefore lapsed, we should, had Mr. 
Chamberlain's contention been correct, have had two 
conflicting preambles to one and the same conven- 
tion. Which would have been absurd. 

Now any reasonable person would have thought 
that Mr. Chamberlain would see that he was wrong ; 
but no : he simply continued to maintain that the su- 
zerainty existed. It will be universally admitted 
that it is impossible to come to a logical understand- 
ing with a man like that ; and we must blame the well- 

251 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

known English insolence, where a small nation is con- 
cerned, which alone can have permitted Mr. Cham- 
berlain to keep up his nonsensical argmnent. 

The correspondence between the Government and 
Mr. Chamberlain was interrupted and accompanied 
by two important events in the internal life of the 
Republic: the negotiations concerning the work of 
the Industrial Commission and the conflict between 
the judicial and state authorities. 

The Industrial or Mining Commission was ap- 
pointed to investigate the complaints of the mining 
industry. That there were certain burdens which 
pressed too heavily upon that industry and which 
must be decreased was an undoubted fact, and was 
shown in the report of the committee; but the prin- 
cipal reason why some mines gave no profit and 
others less profit than the shareholders would have 
liked to see was to be found in over-capitalization, 
in the floating of companies on worthless properties, 
in the reconstruction of companies whose profits went 
to the financial houses, and in the speculative fever 
which drove up shares to such a height that it be- 
came impossible for the purchaser to rely on receiv- 
ing a good dividend. The great financial houses had 
everything in their hands and caused prices to rise or 
fall as they pleased; and the public was the victim 
of their manoeuvres. 

The commission, which held its sittings at Johan- 

252 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

nesburg and heard a crowd of witnesses, made a 
series of suggestions in its report as to how the de- 
mands of the industry could be met. The principal 
suggestions were: 

A reduction of the import-duty on food-stuffs. 

An agreement with the other States of South Af- 
rica to facilitate the engagement and cheapen the 
transport of colored laborers. 

The appointment of a committee to enquire into 
the possibiHty of abohshing the dynamite monopoly. 
Meantime, it was recormnended that the Govern- 
ment should itself import dynamite and sell it to the 
mines at cost price, with the addition of an import 
duty of twenty shillings. 

A reduction in the railway tariff equal to a de- 
crease of £500,000 in the gross profits of the com- 
pany. 

These were the principal suggestions ; a few others 
of lesser importance may be passed over. The Gov- 
ernment submitted the report to the Volksraad, 
which appointed a committee to examine the report 
and make suggestions. After long debates on the 
opinion of the Volksraad committee, it was at last 
moved and carried that the railway company should 
reduce its charges to the extent of reducing its tak- 
ings by .£200,000 and that the Government should 
endeavor to find means for a cheaper supply of dy- 
namite to the mines. The Government succeeded in 

253 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

reducing the freights, especially for coal and food- 
stufFs, and in diminishing the price of dynamite by 
five shillings a case. Moreover, an arrangement was 
concluded with Portugal by which large contingents 
of Kaffir laborers were obtained from Portuguese 
territory. Mr. Chamberlain afterwards accused the 
Government of disregarding the suggestions of its 
own Industrial Commission. 

I have mentioned the conflict between the judicial 
and state authorities, in other words, between the 
Government and the Volksraad on the one side and a 
section of the Supreme Court on the other. The 
dispute arose as follows. It was a generally accepted 
principle that the resolutions of the Volksraad were 
valid in law, even if they conflicted with the consti- 
tution. The Supreme Court, particularly Judge 
Kotze, with whom the conflict now arose, had, in 
former law-suits, as for instance in the " Doms " 
case, accepted and acknowledged this principle. 
Suddenly, in a subsequent case, it refused to do so. 
Certain tracts of land in the Krugersdorp district 
had been " proclaimed " as gold-fields, and, on the 
day when this proclamation was to come into effect, 
thousands of people assembled, each intending, as 
the law originally provided, to peg out his claims or 
bewaarplaatsen for himself. They who fii'st pegged 
out those bewaarplaatsen, to the extent to which each 
was entitled in law, became their owners, subject, 

254! 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

of course, to the payment of the legal dues. The 
Government had been informed that there was a 
danger of disorders arising out of this manner of 
dividing the land, owing to the great rush to the new 
gold-fields. They accordingly determined, so as not 
to give England a fresh opportunity for an unde- 
served attack, to ask the Volksraad to pass a resolu- 
tion to the effect that the " proclaimed " places 
should not, as the gold-laAv prescribed, be pegged 
out, but drawn by lot. In this way, each apphcant 
stood the same chance of success, and all disorder 
would be avoided. A certain Brown, however, took 
no notice of this resolution, but, on the day when 
the proclamation (which had meantime been with- 
drawn) was to take effect, pegged out a large num- 
ber of claims and tendered the legal dues, which were 
refused. When Brown's case was brought before 
the Supreme Court, which was sitting. Chief Justice 
Kotze went back upon liis former decisions and de- 
clared that the Volksraad had no right to pass resolu- 
tions which violated the principles of the constitution. 
This decision would have upset the whole country, 
for a number of rules concerning the gold-fields, the 
franchise and so on depended on resolutions of the 
Volksraad. It was therefore impossible for the Gov- 
ernment to acquiesce in this decision, which would 
have caused unspeakable confusion. In a country 
whose conditions undergo such rapid alterations as is 

255 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

naturally the case in a gold-producing country, and 
which harbors so many speculators and schemers as 
were constantly flowing into the South African Re- 
public, it was absolutely necessary that, at any given 
moment, certain interests could be protected and 
dangers averted from the State by decrees of the 
Volksraad. To give an instance : in November, 1896, 
the revised gold-law, which had been passed in the 
former session, was to come into operation. It con- 
tained one clause, however, which was not quite clear 
and which, unless the point in doubt was elucidated 
by force of law, might seriously injure the mining 
industry and deliver its rights into the hands of spec- 
ulators. What happened? The mining industry 
naturally went to the Government and called atten- 
tion to the danger. Dr. Leyds thereupon attended 
a sitting of the Volksraad, explained the position and 
obtained a decree which removed the danger. Every 
one looked upon this as the natural course. Now, 
suddenly, a different view was taken; and it was this 
that caused the conflict. 

Sir Henry de Villiers, the Chief Justice of Cape 
Colony, who, by the way, shared the opinion of the 
Government, brought about an adjustment: the 
judge promised to respect the decrees of the Volks- 
raad and I, on my side, promised to move the revision 
of the constitution in the Volksraad. Not long be- 
fore, a law had been passed by which every judicial 

256 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

functionary, on taking his oath of office, was to 
promise not to assume the right of toetsing} that is 
to say, of testing the laws as to their validness. In 
February, 1898, however. Chief Justice Kotze wrote 
to me saying that I had not effected the revision of 
the constitution which I had promised him, that he 
therefore considered himself to be released from his 
own promise and that he intended in future to test 
the validness of all the resolutions of the Volksraad 
by the constitution. This was too much: I had had 
no opportunity of introducing a bill for the revision 
of the constitution, seeing that the Volksraad did 
not meet till May. I now gave the Chief Justice 
his dismissal. The English press ranted and raged, 
and Mr. Chamberlain afterwards tui*ned this incident 
into an " Uitlander grievance." 

Meanwhile Mr. Chamberlain had found the man 
he wanted for his dealings with the South African 
Republic. In 1897, Sir Alfred Milner was appointed 
Governor of Cape Colony and High Comimissioner 
for South Africa. Sir Alfred had formerly served 
his country in Egypt, and, if he learned anything 
there, it was to look upon the fellahs as creatures of 
an inferior species. The ideas which he had imbibed 
in Egypt he brought with him to South Africa, so 

1 Testing, or criticising. In my translation of President Kruger's 
speech, printed in the Appendix, in which he ascribes the invention of 
this right to the Devil, I have ventured to employ the phrase, " the right 
of criticism," throughout. — Translator's Note. 

17 257 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

much so that he forgot that the Afrikander is a dif- 
ferent creature from the Egyptian fellah. There is 
no doubt that Mr. Chamberlain appointed Sir Al- 
fred Milner only with a view of driving matters in 
South Africa to extremes. The appointment was 
received by the Jingoes with loud jubilation. The 
aim and principle of his policy are to be found in the 
words which he spoke to a distinguished Afrikander : 

" The power of Afrikanderdom must be broken." 

This tool of Mr. Chamberlain's has fulfilled his 
mission faithfully, and to-day enjoys the satisfaction 
of having turned South Africa into a wilderness and 
robbed thousands of innocent people of their lives. 
Lord Milner is the typical Jingo, autocratic beyond 
endurance and fiilled with contempt for all that is not 
English. 

When this man assumed office, my term as Presi- 
dent had expired and new elections were about to be 
held. This time three candidates presented them- 
selves : myself, Joubert, and S chalk Burger, a mem- 
ber of the Executive Raad and Chairman of the In- 
dustrial Commission of 1897. This was the first 
election which, according to the new law, was held by 
ballot. 

Meanwhile, new elections had also taken place in 
the Free State, as President Reitz was obliged, ow- 
ing to long illness, to resign his office. Judge M. T. 
Steyn was elected President in his place. To give 

258 



KRUGER'S THIRD PRESIDENCY 

a portrait here of this man would be superfluous. 
His heroism, his resolution and his patriotism are 
known to all the world ; and, write what one may, it 
will always remain an impossible task to give a de- 
scription of the feeHngs of attachment, respect and 
love that fill the hearts of all true Afrikanders for 
President Steyn. He will certainly be handed down 
in the memory of his people to the furthest genera- 
tion as one of the greatest and noblest men that have 
seen the hght in South Africa. 

Some time after President Steyn's election, a new 
conference was held at Bloemfontein with the object 
of biinging about a closer alHance between the two 
Repubhcs. The impulse towards this closer alliance 
was felt on both sides and was due, above all, to the 
Jameson Raid. I and some of my councilors went 
to Bloemfontein with this object; and it was during 
our stay there, on the occasion of a dinner that was 
given us, that I made a jest in the course of my 
speech by saying that Queen Victoria was a " kwaaie 
vrouw/^ Now, although every one who knows the 
Afrikander Taal understands that, by this, I meant 
to convey only that Queen Victoria was a lady with 
whom one must be careful what one does, the Jingo 
press tried to make it appear as though I had grossly 
insulted the Queen, whereas the opposite, of course, 
was true.^ 

1 The reader may take it that to call a woman a kwaaie vrouw in the 
Taal, or kwade vrouw in European Dutch, is equivalent to saying that 

259 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

The conference between the two Governments Was 
eminently successful. It was resolved that burghers 
of both States should be treated on an equal footing, 
so that, for instance, the rights which a Transvaaler 
enjoyed in the Free State were also granted to a 
Free Stater in the Transvaal, only the franchise 
being left untouched. Furthermore, a political al- 
liance was concluded, which created a council of 
delegates, or federal council, which was to sit every 
year, alternately at Pretoria and Bloemfontein, and 
make recoromendations on matters that might lead 
to federation as well as suggestions for the assimila- 
tion of the laws of the two Republics. The Volks- 
raad of each State approved this treaty, and the only 
modification introduced was to resolve that a burgher 
of either Republic should receive burgher rights in 
the sister state so soon as he had taken the oath pre- 
scribed. 

she is "a bad woman to deal with, to quarrel with, or to trifle with." 
The epithet, in short, can be used in Dutch in an objective as well as in 
a subjective sense. — Translator's Note. 



260 



CHAPTER XII 

PAUL KRUGER'S FOURTH 
PRESIDENCY 



CHAPTER XII 

PAUL KRUGER's fourth PRESIDENCY 

The Bxmu Question — Sir Alfred Milner — F. W. Eeitz — J. C. 
Smuts — The agitation of the South African League — The 
Edgar Case — The crisis: the suffrage, the suzerainty — The 
ultimatum — The war — President Kruger during the war — On 
the way to Europe — On foreign soil — Homeless — Conclusion. 

THE result of the new election came as a sur- 
prise to friends and enemies alike ; for, although 
my re-election was certain, no one suspected that I 
would obtain such an overwhelming majority. The 
official figures were: 

Kruger 12,858 votes 

Schalk Burger 3,750 " 

Joubert 2,001 " 

On the 12th of May 1898, I took the oath for the 
fourth time as State President. On this occasion I 
made a speech which took almost three hours to de- 
liver, and in which I set forth my religious and po- 
litical views on the actual situation and on the prob- 
lems confronting the State.^ 

iThis speech, by far the longest speech that President Kruger ever de- 
livered, is really a series of addresses to the First and Second Volksraad, 
the Executive Raad, the representatives of the Orange Free State, the 
corps diplomatique, the burghers, the naturaUzed foreigners, the new im- 
migrants, the judges, the clergy, the schoolmasters and mistresses and the 
children. It will be found in the Appendix.— iVb^e by the Editor of the 
German Edition. 

263 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

During the session of the Volksraad of 1898, Dr. 
Leyds was ahnost unanimously re-elected State Sec- 
retary, but was shortly afterwards appointed Envoy 
Extraordinary of the Republic in Europe. As his 
successor, Abraham Fischer was elected, one of the 
ablest and most sagacious statesmen in South Africa, 
and at that time a member of the Executive Raad 
of the Orange Free State. He refused, however, 
to accept the proffered appointment, whereupon Mr. 
F. W. Reitz, who had recently been promoted to a 
judgeship in the South African Republic, was 
elected State Secretary, a happy choice, for Mr. 
Reitz is looked upon by friend and foe alike as one 
of the most honest men that have ever played a part 
in politics. Moreover, he possessed an abundant 
knowledge of affairs, thanks to his long political 
career. 

At the same time, J. C. Smuts, a representative of 
the younger generation of Afrikanders, was ap- 
pointed State Attorney. Smuts is one of the clever- 
est lawyers in South Africa and a man of versatile 
attainments besides. He is personally a very simple 
man, and, to meet him, one would not suspect that he 
possesses so firm a will and so determined a charac- 
ter as he does. Although scarcely 30 years of age 
and without the slightest previous experience of mili- 
tary affairs, he developed, in the later phases of the 
war, into a most brilliant general, so that he added 

264 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

to his position as State Attorney that of an assistant 
commandant general of the South African RepuhHc. 
Smuts will yet play a great part in the history of 
South Africa. 

Shortly after the swearing-in of Messrs. Reitz and 
Smuts, the Bunu question became urgent, and Sir 
Alfred Milner received his first chance to provoke 
and thwart the Republic. 

The Bunu question was briefly as follows : accord- 
ing to the old custom, the Swazi king had the right 
to put any of his subjects to death whenever he 
pleased. This condition was naturally altered from 
the moment when the Republic took over the admin- 
istration of Swaziland. In the early part of 1898, 
Bunu murdered one of his indunas, named Umbaba, 
in addition to some others. It was stated by eye-wit- 
nesses that Bunu had killed Umbaba with his own 
hand. When Bunu was summoned by the State At- 
torney to appear before the court at Bremersdorp, 
he at first refused to come, and, when eventually he 
did come, arrived accompanied by an armed suite, 
and adopted a threatening attitude towards Krogh, 
the Special Commissioner for Swaziland. Krogh 
was consequently obliged to let the matter drop, and 
Bunu returned to his town. 

The Government had no choice but to send an 
armed force to Swaziland, in order to protect life and 
property and to compel Bunu, if necessary by force, 

265 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

to appear before the court. Meanwhile, the High 
Commissioner deemed it necessary to interfere in the 
matter, probably with no other object than to cause 
the RepubHc needless annoyance. Perhaps, also, he 
thought that the Bunu question would give him the 
occasion to involve the Repubhc in war with Eng- 
land. He contended, namely, that the Government 
had not the right to summon Bunu before the Swazi- 
land court, notwithstanding that the Swaziland Con- 
vention contained an article stipulating that criminal 
cases occurring in Swaziland should be tried by the 
Supreme Court at Bremersdorp. When Bunu saw 
that the Government of the Republic was in earnest, 
he fled to Zululand and placed himself under the pro- 
tection of the British Government. In order to avoid 
getting into difficulties for Bunu's sake, the Govern- 
ment was obhged to conclude an agreement with the 
High Commissioner which determined that Bunu 
should be allowed to return, and that he should only 
be punished with a fine. At the same time, a clause 
was added to the Swaziland Convention, distinctly 
deciding which cases should, in future, be within the 
competence of the Supreme Court of that country. 

Already at that time, and shortly after the set- 
tlement of the Bunu question, the English in and 
outside South Africa were adopting a defiant atti- 
tude towards the Government of the RepubHc. At 
Johannesburg, a branch of the South African 

266 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

League had been established, at the undoubted insti- 
gation of Cecil Rhodes. This league did its utmost 
to involve the Republic in difficulties with England. 
'No methods were too base or too mean to attain that 
end. When the Government arrested some colored 
persons, British subjects, because they were without 
the passes which they were obliged to carry by the 
Pass Law, a great hubbub was raised and the League 
leaders called a meeting in the Amphitheater at Jo- 
hannesburg to protest against the action of the Re- 
pubhc. The burghers' blood boiled at the attitude of 
this Rhodes institution : they attended the meeting in 
large numbers, with the result that a brawl arose and 
the demonstrators were dispersed with sticks by the 
burghers. That this brought grist to the mill of the 
Jingoes, that it was probably just what they desired, 
is easily understood. 

Shortly after, another incident occurred which 
caused yet more excitement and which was repre- 
sented by the Enghsh press in a shamefully distorted 
fashion. Even Mr. Chamberlain did not blush to 
make use of these misrepresentations, although it 
would have been easy for him to learn the whole 
truth. What was the question? On the night of 
the 18th of December 1898, a certain Foster, a Brit- 
ish subject, was attacked by another British subject 
called Edgar, and so maltreated that he was left 
lying for dead. He was taken to the hospital 

267 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

and died a few days later in consequence of the 
blows which Edgar had given him. Immediately 
after the perpetration of his crime, Edgar fled to 
his room and soon a few police came upon the scene, 
attracted by the screams of the bystanders. Among 
the police was one named Jones, a son of a former 
coachman to the Queen of England, who had, how- 
ever, in his quality as a policeman, become a burgher 
of the Republic. This Jones, thinking that Foster 
was dead, followed Edgar to his apartment to arrest 
him for murder. As Edgar was caught in the very 
act, the police had the right, according to the laws, 
not only of the Republic, but of the whole of South 
Africa and of England herself, to enter his house, 
if necessary by force, and arrest the culprit. As 
Edgar had locked the door and refused to open it, 
Jones broke it open and, while doing so, was struck 
a violent blow by Edgar with a bar of iron. There- 
upon Jones shot Edgar dead. Although every one 
will admit that the policeman only did his duty, he 
was nevertheless prosecuted by the State Attorney 
for manslaughter, in order to remove any ground for 
complaint on the part of England. He was, how- 
ever, as was to be expected, acquitted by the court. 
But how did Mr. Chamberlain represent this matter? 
As follows : that policemen broke into a man's house 
at night without a warrant on the mere statement 
of one person, which subsequently turned out to be 

268 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

untrue, that the man had committed a crime, and 
killed him there and then, because, according to their 
own account, he hit one of them with a stick! Can 
malevolence go further than this? And ought not 
a minister to be ashamed thus to violate the truth in 
an official dispatch? 

We now come to the period immediately preceding 
the serious crisis. In the meantime, the English and 
the English press, both in South Africa and England, 
were agitating and vociferating against the Republic. 
An election had taken place, in the previous year, in 
Cape Colony, in which the Afrikander party had 
gained the victory, a fact which drove Rhodes and 
all his Jingo clique to fury. Sir Alfred Milner, in- 
stead of confining himself to his role of Governor, 
showed himself in his true colors and openly espoused 
the side of the Jingoes in Cape Colony. It was evi- 
dent to all that a crisis was at hand which, if not 
carefully treated, could end only in catastrophe. But 
where there are two parties, it avails nothing that one 
is yielding and compliant, when the other at all costs 
pushes matters to extremes and, as in this case, to 
a war. That the Government of the South African 
Republic, in the negotiations that preceded the war, 
was yielding and compliant is shown by the manner 
in which the correspondence with England was con- 
ducted at this time. 

The question of the franchise was that which Sir 

269 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Alfred Milner and Mr. Chamberlain employed as 
a pretext to force a war upon the Republic. Before, 
therefore, discussing the negotiations concerning the 
franchise question, it is well to mention the fact that, 
as early as the beginning of 1899, I had held meet- 
ings of the burghers at Rustenburg and Heidelberg 
in order to obtain their support for my proposal to 
reduce the period required for securing the full fran- 
chise from fourteen years to nine years. From there 
I went to Johannesburg and there declared at a pub- 
lic meeting that I hoped later to reduce the period of 
nine years' residence to a still shorter period. This 
fact deserves special mention, because it was prob- 
ably that which startled Mr. Chamberlain and Sir 
Alfred Milner and impelled them to hurry on the 
crisis. Firmly determined as they were to force a 
war upon the Repubhc, these two men saw that they 
must lose no time, since I myself had begun to intro- 
duce reforms which might presently deprive them of 
their pretext for going to war. Sir Alfred Milner 
was in England at that time, and doubtless turned 
his stay to account to arrange with Chamberlain how 
they must set to work to carry out their imperiahst 
progranmie. By the time he returned, the whole 
thing was settled and arranged. 

The League at Johannesburg began by drawing 
up a petition to the Queen in which they enumerated 
a mass of grievances which, as British subjects, they 

270 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

claimed to have against the Repubhc, and ended by- 
asking for the intervention of the British Govern- 
ment. Mr. Eraser, the acting British Agent, refused 
to receive the petition. For this he was rapped 
over the knuckles by the Colonial Secretary, who was 
just seeking an opportunity to meddle with the in- 
ternal affairs of the Republic, with the result that, 
on a later occasion, Mr. Conyngham Greene, the real 
representative of the British Crown at Pretoria, who 
had also been to England with Sir Alfred Milner, 
knew better what was expected of him. In the mean- 
time, Sir Alfred Milner had declared that an anti- 
British movement existed among the Afrikander 
population throughout South Africa. This, nota 
bene J after he had cabled to England in 1897, on the 
occasion of the Queen's Jubilee, that the Afrikanders 
in Cape Colony were very loyal to England. 

A second petition was drawn up by the League 
and signed by 21,684 British subjects. The signa- 
tures were collected by every kind of fraud. The 
Government of the Repubhc obtained many sworn 
declarations which stated that individuals had signed 
as many names as came into their heads. In the same 
way, the names of deceased and absent persons were 
placed on the lists. This is easily understood, when 
one realizes that the persons who went round with the 
Hsts were paid according to the number of names 
which they obtained. A few days later the Govern- 

271 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

merit at Pretoria received a petition with nearly 
23,000 signatures in which the signers, Uitlanders 
of every nationality, declared that they were satis- 
fied with the administration of the country. Rut it 
was not Mr. Chamberlain's object to receive a gen- 
uine petition, so long as he could obtain a weapon 
with which to attack the Republic, and this weapon 
was afforded him by the aforesaid petition, which 
was speedily dispatched to him by the Rritish Agent, 
Mr. Greene. 

Meanwhile, at the commencement of May, Sir 
Alfred Milner had sent a cablegram to England 
which would have done credit to a sensation-monger- 
ing journalist. In this dispatch, he declared that Her 
Majesty's Government must give some striking 
proof of its intention not to be ousted from its po- 
sition in South Africa, that thousands of British sub- 
jects were kept permanently in the position of helots 
and that the case for intervention was overwhelming. 
Mr. Chamberlain thereupon sent a dispatch, dated 
10 May 1899, in which he acknowledged the receipt 
of the petition to the Queen, recapitulated all the 
grievances of the Uitlanders and ended by suggest- 
ing to Sir Alfred Milner that a conference should 
take place between him and myself at Bloemfontein 
at which the question would be discussed. In the 
meantime, prompted by a sincere desire to put an 
end to the prevailing disquiet, President Steyn, be- 

272 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

fore the receipt of this dispatch, had made the same 
proposal to both myself and Sir Alfred Milner. We 
both accepted the invitation and the well-known 
Bloemfontein Conference met on the 31st of May 
1899, and lasted several days. With me were Schalk 
Burger and A. D. Wolmarans, members of the Ex- 
ecutive Raad, and J. C. Smuts, the State Attorney. 
Mr. Abraham Fischer, a member of the Executive 
Raad of the Orange Free State, kindly offered to act 
as interpreter. 

The conference came to nothing. Sir Alfred Mil- 
ner showed from the commencement that he had not 
the least desire to come to an agreement. He de- 
manded : 

1. Franchise after five years' residence. 

2. An alteration in the oath of naturalization. 

3. Increased representation of the new burghers 
in the Volksraad. 

After several days' discussion, I offered: 

1. Naturalization after two years' residence. Full 
franchise after five years more (or seven years in 
all, instead of fourteen, as the law then stood) . 

2. Increased representation of the Uitlanders in 
the Volksraad. 

3. An oath of naturalization similar to that in the 
Orange Free State. 

I demanded, however, that the franchise should 
be made to depend on the possession of a certain 

18 273 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

amount of property and naturalization on the pro- 
duction of proof that the individual concerned pos- 
sessed civic rights in his own country. I also asked 
that, as a compensation for the concessions which I 
was making, the British Government should accept 
the principle of arbitration in the case of differences 
between the two States. Sir Alfred Milner, how- 
ever, declared that the concessions were quite insuf- 
ficient. 

During this conference, I pointed out to Sir Al- 
fred that a quantity of the signatures appearing on 
the petitions to the Queen were spurious, whereupon 
the latter answered : 

" Very well, we will investigate the matter.'* 

He asked me whether the petition which had been 
addressed to the Government of the RepubHc did not 
also contain false signatures. I denied this posi- 
tively, and said I was prepared at once to appoint a 
committee to inquire into the genuineness of both 
petitions. I said I was further prepared to grant the 
British Government the right of nominating Eng- 
lishmen to act as members of this committee. Only 
the committee must not be appointed from England 
or acquire an official character, as this might make it 
appear as though the Republic were under British 
suzerainty. Hereupon Sir Alfred would hear no 
more, and said: 

" Let us drop the subject." 

274 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

For the rest, he continued to insist upon what he 
called " his irreducible minimum." He declared that 
he had other grievances, which would remain, even 
if the franchise question was settled, and refused to 
produce them until the franchise question had been 
settled in his way. 

The same evening, I sent to Sir Alfred asking 
him to meet me again the next morning for further 
deliberation; but Sir Alfred answered that he " con- 
sidered this unnecessary and that the conference was 
ended." 

As soon as I had returned to Pretoria, the State 
Secretary wrote a letter to the British Agent touch- 
ing the proposed arbitration tribunal, towards which 
proposal Sir Alfred Milner had adopted an appar- 
ently friendly attitude. This letter was dated 9 June 
1899, and in it the State Secretary made the follow- 
ing proposal to the British Government : 

(1) All future differences between the two Governments 
arising out of varying interpretations of the London Conven- 
tion shall, subject to what is set forth under paragraph 3, at 
the instance of this Government or of Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment, be referred to an arbitration tribunal^ on the imder- 
standing, however, that no matters or differences of trifling 
importance shall be submitted to arbitration. 

(2) The arbitration tribunal shall consist of an arbitrator 
to be nominated by this Government and an arbitrator to 
be nominated by Her Majesty's Government (as, for exam- 
ple, the Chief Justices respectively of the South African Re- 
public and the Cape Colony or Natal). These two must agree 
respecting a third person, who shall act as President of the 

275 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

arbitration tribunal, this person not to be a subject of one 
of the arbitrating parties; and failing agreement upon this 
point J the two Governments shall together name a President; 
the decision in every case to take place by a majority of 
votes. 

(3) The Act of Submission shall in every case be drawn 
up jointly by the two Governments, so that each shall have 
the right to reserve and exclude points which appear to it to 
be too important to be submitted to arbitration, provided that 
thereby the principle itself of arbitration be not frustrated. 

(4) The arbitration tribunal shall itself decide the place 
of its sittings, and shall deal as it thinks fit with the condem- 
nation of parties in the costs, imless special arrangement has 
been made concerning these points in the Act of Submission. 

(5) The regulations of procedure of this arbitration tri- 
bunal can be similar to those agreed to by the Institute of 
International Law in the Hague in 1875, in so far as they 
do not conflict with the foregoing provisions, and in so far 
as they are not amended by both parties in the Act of Sub- 
mission. 

(6) In order to obtain a test of the suitability of such tri- 
bunal, this Government has no objection to its being agreed 
that this reference of Conventional differences shall provision- 
ally take place for a period of five years. 

The letter ended by expressing an earnest hope 
that Her Majesty's Government would accept the 
proposal, which would put an end to the permanent 
feeling of anxiety from which South Africa was suf- 
fering. 

The proposals were made in the manner set forth 
above, with the special purpose of meeting the views 
of the British Government, as that Government ob- 
jected to an arbitration court composed of foreigners 

276 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

and, in any case, declined to submit all questions to 
arbitration. 

Meanwhile, of my own initiative, I introduced a 
draft law into the Volksraad which fixed : 

1. A seven years' residence for obtaining the fran- 
chise. 

2. The immediate grant of the franchise to all who 
had hved nine years in the country, while only five 
years' residence should be necessary for those who 
had been in the country for two years. 

3. All adult sons of foreigners, born in the Re- 
public, to receive the franchise immediately on at- 
taining their majority. 

4. An increase in the representation of the gold- 
fields in each Raad by four members. 

The bill was passed on the 19th of July. In the 
meanwhile, the Intelligence Department of the War 
Ofiice in England had already issued " mihtary 
notes " indicating how war should be waged against 
the Republic. At the same time (although this was 
not yet known). Lord Wolseley had laid his plans 
before the British Government for the conquest and 
seizure of the two RepubHcs. 

On the 26th of June, the British Agent rephed to 
the arbitration proposals as set forth in Mr. Reitz's 
letter. In this answer he stated that Sir Alfred Mil- 
ner could not recommend the acceptance of the pro- 
posal to the British Government, as he considered 

277 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

that the question of finding a remedy for the griev- 
ances of the Uitlanders should first be disposed of. 
Fiu'thermore, he intimated that the scheme drawn 
up by Mr. Reitz was not acceptable to Her Majesty's 
Government, seeing that, to make no mention of 
other objections, the president of the court, accord- 
ing to that scheme, could not be a subject of either of 
the arbitrating parties. 

At the beginning of July, the leaders of the Af- 
rikander party, Messrs. Hofmeyer and Herholdt, 
went from Cape Town to Bloemfontein and thence 
to Pretoria to persuade the Government still further 
to simplify the new Franchise Law in such a way as 
to make the seven years' clause retrospective : so that 
every one who had spent seven years or more in the 
Republic could obtain the franchise at once; those 
who had been six years in the country would have to 
wait one year more in order to obtain the franchise ; 
those ones who had spent three years in the country 
must wait four years more, and so on. Their sug- 
gestions found a ready hearing among the members 
of the Government and the Volksraad, who were in- 
chned to make even more concessions for dear peace' 
sake. 

On the 18th of July, probably after having been 
informed by Messrs. Hofmeyer and Herholdt of the 
result of their mission, the Cape Ministry issued a 
note in which they expressed the conviction that there 

278 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

existed not the least occasion for intervention on the 
part of England in the internal affairs of the Re- 
public. 

On the 20th of July, the so-called Uitlanders' 
Council telegraphed to England that they were not 
satisfied with the Franchise Law which had just been 
passed (the law of the 19th of July) . 

On the 27th of July, Mr. Chamberlain sent a dis- 
patch in which he recapitulated the events since the 
conference, persisted in his contentions that not only 
the letter but the spirit of the London Convention of 
1884 had been constantly violated by the Govern- 
ment of the Republic, and ended by maintaining his 
contention that the preamble to the Convention of 
1881 (respecting the Suzerainty) still held good. 
He rejected the proposed arbitration court, although 
he suggested that certain questions might be sub- 
mitted to some judicial authority. 

On the 1st of August, Mr. Chamberlain tele- 
graphed to the High Commissioner proposing that 
England and the Republic should appoint a joint 
commission to revise the Franchise Law which had 
been passed, and to enquire whether this law would 
afford a sufficient representation to the Uitlanders 
and, if this were not the case, to see what additions 
or alterations might be necessary to attain this object. 
This proposal of Mr. Chamberlain's was a direct vio- 
lation of the London Convention of 1884, for it is 

279 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

hardly possible to imagine a clearer case of inter- 
ference with the internal affairs of the Republic. 

The State Secretary, accordingly, replied on the 
12th of August, calling Mr. Chamberlain's attention 
to the fact that, according to the Convention of 1884, 
the British Government was not to meddle in the 
internal affairs of the Republic, and expressed 
the hope that, in making his proposal, Mr. Cham- 
berlain did not mean to encroach upon the rights 
of the Republic. The State Secretary further gave 
expression to the opinion that the object which 
Mr. Chamberlain had in view in the appointment of 
a joint commission could be as easily attained by ask- 
ing questions and obtaining information about the 
measure. He also observed to Mr. Chamberlain that 
a judgment could only be formed as to whether a 
law answered its purpose or not, if it had been in 
operation for some time. 

On the 15th of August, the State Attorney, Mr. 
J. C. Smuts, had an interview with the British Agent, 
in which he asked him whether Her Majesty's Gov- 
ernment would consider the seven years' retrospec- 
tive franchise, with an increase of seats for the Uit- 
landers in the Volksraad, to be sufficient and, in that 
case, waive the joint commission. Mr. Greene an- 
swered that he did not know whether Her Majesty's 
Government would consent to abandon their demand, 
but that the position was very critical; that Her 

280 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

Majesty's Government had made promises to the 
Uitlanders, and that they would, therefore, be ob- 
liged to insist on their demands and, if necessary, 
to employ force. He added that the only chance for 
the South African Repubhc was to comply without 
delay with the demands put forward by Sir Alfred 
Milner at Bloemf ontein. 

On the 19th of August, the State Secretary wrote 
to the British Agent making the following alterna- 
tive proposal to Her Majesty's Government: 

(1) The Government are willing to recommend to the Volks- 
raad and the people a five years' retrospective franchise as pro- 
posed by His Excellency the High Commissioner on June 
1st, 1899. 

(2) The Government are further willing to recommend to 
the Volksraad that eight new seats in the First Volksraad, 
and, if necessary, also in the Second Volksraad, be given to 
the population of the Wit-vvatersrand, thus, with the two sit- 
ting members for the gold-fields, giving to the population 
thereof ten representatives in a E.aad of twenty-six, and in 
future the representation of the gold-fields of this Republic 
shall not fall below the proportion of one-fourth of the total. 

(3) The new burghers shall equally with the old burghers 
be entitled to vote at the election for State President and Com- 
mandant General. 

(4) This Government will always be prepared to take into 
consideration such friendly suggestions regarding the details of 
the franchise law as Her Majesty's Government, through the 
British Agent, may wish to convey to it. 

(5) In putting forward the above proposals to the Govern- 
ment of the South African Republic assumes — 

(o) That Her British Majesty's Government will agree that 
the present intervention shall not form a precedent 
281 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

for future similar action, and that, in the future, no 
interference in the internal affairs of the Republic 
will take place. 

(6) That Her Majesty's Government will not further in- 
sist on the assertion of the Suzerainty, the contro- 
versy on this subject being allowed tacitly to drop. 

(c) That arbitration from which foreign element, other than 
Orange Free State, is to be excluded, will be conceded 
as soon as the franchise scheme has become law. 

(6) Immediately on Her British Majesty's Government ac- 
cepting this proposal for a settlement, the Government will 
ask the Volksraad to adjourn for the purpose of consulting 
the people about it, and the whole scheme might become law, 
say, within a few weeks. 

(7) In the meantime the form and scope of the proposed 
tribunal are also to be discussed and provisionally agreed upon, 
while the franchise scheme is being referred to the people, so 
that no time may be lost in putting an end to the present state 
of affairs. 

The State Secretary ended by saying " that the 
Government trusts that Her Majesty's Government 
will clearly understand that in the opinion of this 
Government, the existing franchise law of this Re- 
public is both fair and liberal to the new population, 
and that the consideration that induces them to go 
further, as they do in the above proposals, is their 
strong desire to get the controversies between the two 
Governments settled; and, further, to put an end 
to the present strained relations between the two 
Governments, and the incalculable harm and loss it 
has already occasioned in South Africa, and to pre- 
vent a racial war, from the eiFects of which South 

282 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

Africa may not recover for many generations, per- 
haps never at all; and, therefore, this Government, 
having regard to all these circimistances, would 
highly appreciate it, if Her Majesty's Government, 
seeing the necessity of preventing the present crisis 
from developing still further, and the urgency of 
an early termination of the present state of affairs, 
would expedite the acceptance or refusal of the set- 
tlement here offered." 

On the 21st of August, the State Secretary again 
wrote to the British Agent to explain and complete 
his letter of the 19th of August. In this second let- 
ter, he makes it clear that the proposals regarding the 
question of franchise and representation in the dis- 
patch of the 19th of August must be regarded as 
expressly conditional on Her Majesty's Government 
consenting to the points set forth in paragraph 5 of 
the dispatch, viz. : 

(a) In the future no interference in the internal 
affairs of the South African Republic. 

(b) No further insistence on the assertion of the 
existence of the suzerainty. 

(c) The acceptance of arbitration for the settle- 
ment of questions in dispute. 

These proposals were made after the State Attor- 
ney had had a new interview with Mr. Greene, the 
result of which was to convince him that the British 
Government would be prepared to take those pro- 

283 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

posals into consideration. This would cause the pro- 
posal for a joint commission to lapse. 

On the 25th of August the so-called Uitlanders' 
Council and the South African League declared that 
the franchise reforms were still insufficient, and de- 
manded further " reforms," such as the disarming 
of the Boers and the demolition of the forts. 

On the 26th of August, Mr. Chamberlain made 
a speech on the occasion of a garden-party at his 
place at Highbury, in which, among other things, 
he said: 

Mr. Kruger dribbles out reforms like water from a squeezed 
sponge, and he either accompanies his offers with conditions 
which he knows to be impossible, or he refuses to allow us to 
make a satisfactory investigation of the nature of these re- 
forms. . . . The sands are running down in the glass. 
. . . The knot must be loosened ... or else we shall 
have to find other ways of untying it. 

On the 30th of August, he sent a dispatch in which 
he stated, among other things, that Her Majesty's 
Government assumed that the adoption in principle 
of the franchise proposals would not be hampered 
by any conditions which would impair their effect; 
that Her Majesty's Government were unable to ap- 
preciate the objections entertained by the Govern- 
ment of the South African Republic to a joint com- 
mission of inquiry; that Her Majesty's Government, 
however, would appoint a commission on their side to 
institute an inquiry into the law and to make the nec- 

284 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

essary suggestions to the Government of the Repub- 
lic, and trusted that different conditions, as to previ- 
ous registration, quahfication and behavior, would be 
omitted from the proposed new law. With regard 
to the conditions of the Government of the South 
African Repubhc, Mr. Chamberlain said, as regards 
intervention, Her Majesty's Government hoped that 
the fulfilment of the promises made and the just 
treatment of the Uitlanders in future would render 
unnecessary any further interference on their be- 
half, but that Her Majesty's Government could not 
debar themselves from their rights under the conven- 
tions. (N.B. — The convention of 1881 had lapsed, 
as is known.) With regard to the suzerainty, Mr. 
Chamberlain referred the Government to a former 
dispatch, in which he maintained that the suzerainty 
stiU existed. With regard to the proposed tribunal 
of arbitration, he agreed to a discussion of the form 
and scope of such a tribunal, from which, however, 
foreigners and foreign influence were to be excluded. 
He moreover proposed that a further conference 
should take place between myself and the High Com- 
missioner at Cape Town, and ended by reminding the 
Government of the South African Republic that 
there were other matters of difference which could 
not be settled by the grant of political representation 
to the Uitlanders and which were not proper sub j ects 
for reference to arbitration. 

285 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Mr. Chamberlain afterwards declared that, in this 
dispatch, he accepted the proposals of the Govern- 
ment of the South African Repubhc as set forth 
above. He is probably the only man in the world 
who read his dispatch in this light: every impartial 
judge will think the opposite. 

On the 31st of August, Sir Alfred Milner tele- 
graphed to Mr. Chamberlain: 

The purport of all the representations made to me is to urge 
prompt and decided action; not to deprecate further inter- 
ference on the part of Her Majesty's Government. British 
South Africa is prepared for extreme measures. ... I 
fear seriously that there will be a strong reaction of feeling 
against the policy of Her Majesty's Government if matters 
drag. 

In reply to Mr. Chamberlain's dispatch of the 30th 
of August, the State Secretary, on the 2d of Septem- 
ber, wrote to the British Agent at Pretoria that the 
Government of the South African Republic had 
heard with the deepest regret that Her Majesty's 
Government had not seen their way to accept the pro- 
posals which were set forth in the notes of the 19th 
and 21st of August, under the conditions attached 
thereto, the more so as the Government had supposed 
from semi-official discussions that it might infer that 
its proposal would have been acceptable to Her Ma- 
jesty's Government. In consequence, the Govern- 
ment of the South African Republic considered that 

286 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

its proposal had lapsed. With regard to the uni- 
lateral inquiry, the Government was willing, if it 
should appear that the existing franchise law might 
be made more effective, to lay proposals before the 
Volksraad. It appeared, however, to it that the find- 
ings of a unilateral commission, especially when 
made before the working of the law had been prop- 
erly tested, would probably be of little value. Pass- 
ing to the remarE:s made by Mr. Chamberlain in con- 
nection with the conditions attached to the proposals 
in the note of the 19th of August, the State Secre- 
tary observes: 

(a) That this Government has never, with reference to the 
question of intervention, either asked or intended that Her 
Majesty's Government should abandon any right it may have, 
as a matter of fact by virtue of either the Convention of Lon- 
don of 1884 or of general international law, to take action here 
for the protection of British subjects. 

(6) That with regard to the alleged existence of suzerainty, 
the denial of its existence by this Government according to 
its view has already been so clearly explained in its dispatch 
of l6th of April, 1898, that it would be superfluous to repeat 
the facts, arguments and consequences mentioned therein: it 
merely wishes to observe that it adheres to its contentions stated 
in that dispatch. 

With reference to a tribunal of arbitration the 
Government was pleased to see that Her Majesty's 
Government were prepared to enter into negotiations 
with regard to the form and scope of such tribunal. 
It was however not clear to it : 

287 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

(o) If Her Majesty's Government consents that burghers 
of the Orange Free State may also be appointed as members 
of such tribunal. 

(b) What subjects shall be submitted to the decision of such 
court. 

(c) What are the subjects Her Majesty's Government thinks 
cannot be laid before such court. Her Majesty's Government 
states that there are such points, but does not specify them. 

The object contemplated by the Government of 
the South African RepubHc, i.e., the securing of a 
final regulation of all points at issue, would, it opined, 
be altogether frustrated by these limitations. With 
reference to the recommendation of a conference to 
be held, the Government would await further com- 
munications from Her Majesty's Government. The 
State Secretary went on to remark that the proposal 
made by his Government with reference to the fran- 
chise and representation of the Uitlanders was 
extremely liberal, and, as a matter of fact, went fur- 
ther than the propositions of the High Commis- 
sioner put forward at the Bloemfontein Conference; 
that the conditions attached by his Government did 
not demand from the side of Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment any abandonment of existing rights under the 
Convention of London of 1884; that the Government 
of the South African RepubHc could never have ex- 
pected that the answer of Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment to its proposal would be unfavorable; that it 
continued to cherish the hope that a solution of exist- 

S88 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

ing differences might be arrived at; and, in order to 
attain this peaceful solution, the State Secretary 
ended his letter by accepting the joint commission 
formerly proposed by Mr. Chamberlain. 

On the 12th of September, Mr. Greene, on behalf 
of the British Government, answered Mr. Reitz's 
dispatch of the 2d of September, and said that Her 
Majesty's Government could not now consent to go 
back to its former proposal of a joint commission; 
that Her Majesty's Government were still prepared 
to accept the proposals, provided that the inquiry 
which Her Majesty's Government had proposed, 
whether joint or unilateral, showed that the scheme 
would not be encumbered by conditions which would 
nullify its intentions. His Government assumed 
that the new members of the Volksraad would be 
permitted to use their own language. He ended his 
letter by pressing for an immediate reply, and 
stating that, if the reply was negative or inconclu- 
sive. Her Majesty's Government reserved to itself 
the right to reconsider the situation de novo and to 
formulate its own proposals for a final settlement. 

To this the State Secretary replied, on the 15th of 
September, that his Government learned with deep 
regret that Her Majesty's Government withdrew 
its invitation and substituted in its place an entirely 
new proposal; that the proposal contained in the 
notes of the Government of the 19th and 21st of 
19 289 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

August was induced by suggestions given by the 
British Agent to the State Attorney, and these were 
accepted by his Government in good faith, and on 
express request, as equivalent to an assurance that 
the proposal would be acceptable to the British Gov- 
ernment; that his Government could not disguise 
from itself that, in making the proposal contained 
in its note of the 19th of August, it probably ran 
the danger not only of its being disclaimed by the 
Volksraad and by the people, but also that its accep- 
tance might affect the independence of the state by, 
as therein proposed, giving an immediate vote in the 
legislature of the state to a large number of inpour- 
ing foreigners ; but it set against that the continuous 
threatening and undoubted danger to its highly 
prized independence arising from the claim of suze- 
rainty made by Her Majesty's Government, from 
the interference of that Government in the internal 
affairs of the Republic and from the want of an au- 
tomatically working method of regulating differ- 
ences between Her Majesty's Government and the 
Government of the Republic, and was in conse- 
quence prepared to recommend to the Volksraad 
and to the people to run the danger attached to the 
offer made in order to avoid the certainty of the 
greater danger; inasmuch, however, as the condi- 
tions attached to the proposal, the acceptance of 

290 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

which constituted the only consideration for its 
offer, had been declared unacceptable, it could not 
understand on what grounds of justice it could be 
expected that it should be bound to grant the rest. 
As regards the point that the new members should 
speak their own language in the Volksraad, the 
Government could not enter into this and denied 
having made any such promise. The State Secre- 
tary ended his letter by expressing the hope that the 
British Government would abide by its own pro- 
posal for a joint commission and thus put an end 
to the present state of tension. 

To this letter of the State Secretary the British 
Agent replied, on the 25th of September, that Her 
Majesty's Government had on more than one occa- 
sion repeated its assurances that it had no desire to 
interfere in any way with the independence of the 
South African Republic (N.B. — It was always 
doing so) ; that it had not asserted any rights of in- 
terference in the internal affairs of the Republic 
other than those which were derived from the con- 
ventions {N.B. — There was only one!) ; and ended 
by saying that it was useless to pursue further a dis- 
cussion on the lines hitherto followed, and that Her 
Majesty's Government was now compelled to con- 
sider the situation afresh, and to formulate its own 
proposals for a final settlement of the issues which 

291 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

had been created in South Africa by the policy con- 
stantly followed for so many years by the Govern- 
ment of the South African Republic. 

On the 17th of September, the State Secretary 
asked the High Commissioner for explanations re- 
garding the concentration of troops on the frontiers 
of the South African Republic. The High Com- 
missioner replied that those troops were there to de- 
fend British interests and in order to be prepared 
for " possibilities." 

On the 22d of September, the mobilization of an 
army corps for South Africa was announced in 
England, and, on the 28th of September, it was an- 
nounced that the greater part of that army corps 
would leave for South Africa without delay. The 
Government thereupon commandeered the greater 
part of the burghers to take up their position near 
the frontiers of the Republic, in order to be pre- 
pared for a sudden attack on the part of England. 

On the 30th of September, the State Secretary 
informed the British Agent that he would be glad to 
know the decision of the British Government {i.e. 
with reference to the " own proposals " announced 
in the dispatch of 25 September). Mr. Chamber- 
lain answered, on the 2d of October, that the dis- 
patch of Her Majesty's Government was being pre- 
pared, but that it would not be ready for some days. 
It is clear that Mr. Chamberlain only desired to gain 

292 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

time, in order first to have sufficient troops in South 
Africa, before sending his promised dispatch, which 
was nothing else than an ultimatum. 

Before the final steps were reached. President 
Steyn of the Orange Free State had intervened in 
order to make every effort, on his side, to avoid war. 
On the 19th of September, the High Commissioner 
telegraphed to President Steyn that a detachment 
of troops, ordinarily stationed at Cape Town, was 
being sent to assist in securing the line of communi- 
cation between the Colony and the British territo- 
ries lying to the north of it; and that, as this force, 
or a portion of it, might be stationed near the borders 
of the Orange Free State, he, the High Commis- 
sioner, thought it desirable to acquaint His Honor 
with this movement, and the reasons for it, in order 
to prevent any misconception. He added that Her 
Majesty's Government was still hopeful of a 
friendly settlement of the differences which had 
arisen between it and the South African Republic, 
but that, should this hope unfortunately be disap- 
pointed, the British Government looked to the 
Orange Free State to preserve strict neutrality. 

President Steyn replied, on the same day, that he 
was unable to see that the differences justified the 
use of force as their only solution. Seeing the state 
of tension in South Africa, he noted with apprehen- 
sion and regret the stationing of troops near the bor- 

293 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ders of the Orange Free State, since the burghers 
would consider this a menace to that state. If, there- 
fore, unwished-for developments should arise, the 
responsibility would not rest with the Government 
of the Orange Free State. His Honor concluded 
his telegram by stating that he would view with deep 
regret any disturbance of those friendly relations 
which hitherto had existed between Great Britain 
and the Orange Free State. 

On the 27th of September, the Volksraad of the 
Orange Free State adopted a resolution in which it 
declared that no cause for war existed, that such a 
war would be morally a war against the whole white 
population of South Africa, but that, come what 
might, the Orange Free State would honestly and 
faithfully observe its obligations arising from the 
political alliance with the South African Republic. 
At the same time the Government was instructed to 
do everything in its power to contribute by peaceful 
efforts towards the solution of the existing differ- 
ences. 

That same day, the 27th of September, President 
Steyn sent a dispatch to the High Commissioner in 
which he reminded him of the ties of blood and 
friendship by which the Orange Free State was 
bound both to Cape Colony and the South African 
Republic, and, in addition, of the close political al- 
liance between the two Republics. He said that it 

294 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

was this strong feeling of amity towards both Great 
Britain and the South African Repubhc that led 
him to bring about the conference between the High 
Commissioner and myself ; that it was largely due to 
the Orange Free State and other friends of peace 
that such radical reforms had been effected by the 
South African Republic in so short a time; that the 
Orange Free State ever kept in view the spirit in 
which it assumed that the British Government was 
willing to act, viz., " to adopt an attitude of friendly 
suggestion and not of dictation in the internal affairs 
of the Republic ; " that, while the Government of the 
Republic, encouraged thereto by the advice of the 
Free State, was busy in meeting the wants of the 
Uitlanders, the British Government had departed 
from the basis of non-interference in the internal 
affairs of the Republic; that the request for the joint 
commission of inquiry emphasized that fact beyond 
any shadow of doubt; that, notwithstanding this, 
the Government of the Orange Free State advised 
the South African Republic to accept the invitation 
of the British Government, in the hope that an im- 
partial investigation might inaugurate a renewal of 
the employment of friendly methods of negotiation ; 
that great, therefore, was the disappointment of the 
Government of the Orange Free State when it tran- 
spired that the British Government now rejected its 
proposal and that the unfortunate tension seemed 

295 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

to be only increasing; that the Government of the 
Orange Free State was still prepared to tender its 
services to procure a peaceful solution of existing 
difficulties, but that it felt itself hampered now as 
in the past (a) by a want of knowledge as to the 
definite object and extent of the demands of the 
British Government, compliance with which that 
Government considered itself entitled to insist upon ; 
and (h) by the fact that, notwithstanding the re- 
peated assurances of the British Government that it 
did not wish to interfere in the internal affairs of 
the Republic nor to disturb its independence, that 
Government had pursued a policy which seemed 
to justify a contrary conclusion. As an instance in 
support of this contention. His Honor mentioned 
the enormous and ever-increasing military prepara- 
tions on the part of the British Government, indicat- 
ing a policy of force and coercion, notwithstanding 
the alleged friendly nature of the negotiations. His 
Honor, therefore, trusted that Her Majesty's Gov- 
ernment might see its way clear to stop any further 
movements or increase of troops on or near the 
borders of both States, pending the arrival of the 
further dispatch intimated as about to be sent, and 
further to give an assurance to that effect ; and added 
that his Government would be glad to be favored 
with the precise nature and scope of the concessions, 
the adoption of which Her Majesty's Government 

296 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

considered itself entitled to claim, or which it sug- 
gested as being necessary or sufficient to ensure a 
satisfactory and permanent solution of existing 
differences. 

On the 2d of October, President Steyn informed 
the High Commissioner that, in view of the totally 
undefended state of the border, of the prevailing 
unrest, and of the continual increase and movement 
of troops on two sides of the Orange Free State, he 
had deemed it advisable to call up his burghers in 
order to satisfy them that due precautions had been 
taken to guard their borders, adding that he was 
still looking forward to a reply to his dispatch of the 
27th of September. 

The High Commissioner replied on the same day 
regretting that the President had called up the bur- 
ghers and declaring that His Honor was aware that 
the South African Republic had placed a very con- 
siderable army on the borders of Natal. 

The President replied, on the 3d of October, that 
the concentration of burghers on the Natal frontier 
by the South African Republic was only the natural 
result of the constant increase of British troops and 
their movement in the direction of the Transvaal 
border. He did not, however, anticipate any imme- 
diate aggressive action on the part of the South 
African Republic, unless further forward move- 
ments of British troops should indicate an intention of 

297 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

attack upon the Transvaal. He went on to press for 
an answer to his dispatch of the 27th of September. 

The High Commissioner answered, on the same 
day, that all the movements of British troops had 
been necessitated by the natural alarm of the inhabi- 
tants in exposed districts and were not comparable 
in magnitude with the massing of armed forces on 
the borders of Natal by the Government of the 
South African Republic. 

The President replied, also on the 3d of October, 
that he did not consider that the movements of Brit- 
ish troops had been necessitated by the natural alarm 
of the inhabitants in exposed districts, nor in fact 
had he ever thought that there were any grounds 
justifying such movements. On the contrary, the 
ever-increasing military preparations, both in Eng- 
land and South Africa, had retarded and hampered 
the efforts that had been made to effect a fair set- 
tlement. He ascribed the failure to arrive at a solu- 
tion of existing difficulties to the bitter and hostile 
tone of utterances, made both by responsible men 
and by the English press in South Africa and Eng- 
land, bristling with misrepresentations and menace 
to the Transvaal, accompanied by ever-increasing 
military preparations, not only in South Africa and 
in England, but throughout the British Empire, 
which were openly stated to be directed against the 
Transvaal. He wished to place on record his earnest 

298 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

conviction that on those in authority who introduced 
the mihtary element, and who thereby inaugurated 
a policy of menace and forcible intervention, would 
rest the responsibility, should all efforts fail to secure 
peace and an honorable settlement. He could not 
but recognize the fact that, in view of the action of 
the British authorities already alluded to, the Trans- 
vaal Government could not be blamed for acting as 
it had done. He was the more confirmed in this view 
by the fact that while he was still without any reply 
to his telegraphic dispatch of the 27th of September, 
the reasonable request therein made that the increase 
and further movement of British troops should be 
stayed, which if accedexi to would probably have pre- 
vented the calling out of the burghers both in the 
South African Republic and in this State, had not 
only been ignored but activity in military prepara- 
tions and the dispatch of troops had been going on 
more persistently than ever. He was not in a posi- 
tion to judge whether the movement of British 
troops on the border of the South African Republic 
was comparable or not in magnitude with the recent 
massing of armed force by the South African Re- 
public on the borders, but it must not be forgotten 
that on all sides, in the English press and elsewhere, 
the assertion constantly found expression that the 
British troops already in the country were more than 
a match for the undisciplined burgher force of the 

299 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Republic. Moreover, troops were being dispatched 
abnost daily from England, which would justify a 
conviction in the minds of the burghers of the South 
African Republic that England had abandoned any 
idea of attempting to arrive at a solution of differ- 
ences except by force. 

On the 4th of October, the High Commissioner 
replied that there was, he thought, a conclusive reply 
to His Honor's accusation against the policy of Her 
Majesty's Government, but that no good purpose 
would be served by recrimination; that the present 
position was that burgher forces were assembled in 
very large numbers in immediate proximity to the 
frontier of Natal, while the British troops occupied 
certain defensive positions well within those borders. 
He would not despair of peace and felt sure that any 
reasonable proposal, from whatever quarter pro- 
ceeding, would be favorably considered by Her 
Majesty's Government. 

On the 5th of October, the President replied that 
he was prepared to make a proposal, but that he con- 
sidered it would not be practicable to induce the Gov- 
ernment of the South African Republic to make or 
entertain proposals or suggestions, unless the troops 
menacing their states were withdrawn farther from 
their borders, and an assurance were also given by 
Her Majesty's Government that all further dispatch 
and increase of troops would at once, and during 

300 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

negotiations, be stopped, and that those now on the 
water would either not be landed or at least would 
remain as far removed as might be from the scene 
of possible hostilities. The President urged upon 
His Excellency the urgent necessity of intimating 
to him without delay whether His Excellency saw 
his way clear to give effect to these his views and 
wishes ; and if so he would take steps to obtain an as- 
surance from the South African Republic to safe- 
guard against any act of invasion or hostility 
against any portion of Her Majesty's territories. 
He would further support all reasonable proposals 
which would possess the element of finality and give 
the assurance of a lasting peace. 

The High Commissioner replied, on the 6th of 
October 1899, that he regretted that the President 
should suggest, as a condition precedent to further 
negotiations, an assurance from Her Majesty's 
Government hampering its freedom of action with 
regard to the disposition of British troops in British 
territory. Such an assurance it was impossible for 
him to ask Her Majesty's Government to give. If, 
on the other hand, the President could obtain an as- 
surance that, pending negotiations, no act of hos- 
tility would be committed, he was prepared to advise 
Her Majesty's Government to give an assurance to 
the like effect. 

Steyn replied, on the same day, that he could not 

SOI 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

be expected to ask the South African Republic to 
continue negotiations in the face of the fact that 
from all sides of Her Majesty's dominions troops 
were being poured into South Africa with the 
avowed object of coercing the South African Re- 
public into accepting whatever terms Her Majesty's 
Government might decide to impose. The Presi- 
dent added that he had no doubt that, in so far as 
Her Majesty's troops were intended for the defence 
of Her Majesty's possessions, the same purpose 
could be effected in another way, and he would be 
willing to assist in its being effected; but the point 
which he thought it fair to urge was that it would 
be taken by the South African Republic as virtually 
amounting to an act of hostility on the part of Her 
Majesty's Government to be continuously increas- 
ing their forces during the negotiations. 

On the 7th of October, His Honor received a 
reply to his dispatch of the 27th of September, in 
which the British Government stated that it had re- 
peatedly explained its views on the questions at issue 
between it and the Government of the South Afri- 
can Republic, and did not think its position open 
to misunderstanding; but, if the President of the 
Orange Free State desired elucidation of any special 
point, it was prepared to give it. As regards the 
military preparations, they had been necessitated by 
the policy of the South African Republic of con- 

302 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

verting that country into a permanent armed camp. 
In view of the rejection of its last proposals by the 
Government of the South African Republic, Her 
Majesty's Government was reconsidering the situa- 
tion, having regard to the grave fact that both 
RepubHcs had now placed themselves on a war 
footing. 

On the same day, 7 October 1899, a royal procla- 
mation appeared in England, summoning Parlia- 
ment and calling out the reserves; at the same time 
an order was issued for the mobilization of an army 
corps for South Africa. 

On the 9th of October, President Steyn sent a 
telegram to the High Commissioner demurring to 
the statement that the military preparations made 
by Her Majesty's Government had been necessi- 
tated by the action of the South African Republic. 
He again urged the withdrawal of forces on both 
sides, such withdrawal to include an undertaking by 
Her Majesty's Government to stop the further in- 
crease of troops. 

I have now given the course of negotiations and 
described events precisely as they occurred. Any 
one who views these matters impartially must admit 
that the British Government, and particularly the 
High Commissioner and Mr. Chamberlain, did their 
utmost to cause the negotiations to fail and to bring 
on a war. 

303 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

The Government of the South African Repubhc 
clearly saw what the British Government wanted, 
that a collision was inevitable, and that the British 
Government was only waiting to send its ultima- 
tmn until sufficient troops had arrived in South 
Africa to overwhelm the Republic from every side. 
When it realized that a war was inevitable, that to 
make concessions availed nothing and that its only 
chance lay in compelling the British Government to 
display its real intentions before all the British troops 
were landed, the Government of the South African 
Republic had recourse to extreme measures, and, on 
the 9th of October, wrote a letter to the British 
Agent, the so-called " Ultimatum." In this docu- 
ment the Government once more set forth how Eng- 
land had not the slightest right to interfere in the 
internal affairs of the Republic; how the Republic 
had yet found occasion to discuss in a friendly fash- 
ion the franchise and the representation of the peo- 
ple with Her Majesty's Government; how on the 
part of Her Majesty's Government the friendly na- 
ture of those discussions had assumed a more and 
more threatening tone; how Her Majesty's Govern- 
ment had finally broken off all friendly correspon- 
dence on the subject; how the Republic was still wait- 
ing for the proposal which the British Government 
had promised to make for a final settlement ; how, in 
view of the British military force on the frontiers, 

304 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

the Republic had been obliged, as a defensive mea- 
sure, to send a portion of the burghers to protect the 
frontiers ; how the unlawful intervention of Her Maj- 
esty's Government in the aif airs of the Republic, in 
conflict with the London Convention of 1884, had 
caused an intolerable condition of affairs to arise to 
which the Government felt itself obliged, in the in- 
terest not only of the Republic but of all South Af- 
rica, to make an end as soon as possible, and there- 
fore felt itself called upon and obliged to press 
earnestly and with emphasis for an immediate ter- 
mination of this state of things, and to request Her 
Majesty's Government to give it the assurance: 

(a) That all points of mutual difference shall be regu- 
lated by the friendly course of arbitration, or by whatever 
amicable way may be agreed upon by this Government with Her 
Majesty's Government. 

(6) That the troops on the borders of this Republic shall 
be instantly withdrawn. 

(c) That all reinforcements of troops which have arrived 
in South Africa since the 1st June 1899 shall be removed 
within a reasonable time, to be agreed upon with this Gov- 
ernment, and with a mutual assurance and guarantee on the 
part of this Government that no attack upon^ or hostilities 
against, any portion of the possessions of the British Gov- 
ernment shall be made by the Republic during further ne- 
gotiations, within a period of time to be subsequently agreed 
upon between the Governments, and this Government will, on 
compliance therewith, be prepared to withdraw the armed 
burghers of this Republic from the borders. 

(d) That Her Majesty's troops which are now on the high 
seas shall not be landed in any port of South Africa. 

20 305 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

The dispatch ended by requesting Her Majesty's 
Government to return an answer before or upon 
Wednesday the 11th of October, not later than 5 
o'clock p.m., adding that, in the event of no satisfac- 
tory answer being received within that interval, the 
Republic would with great regret be compelled to 
regard the action of Her Majesty's Government as a 
formal declaration of war and would not hold itself 
responsible for the consequences thereof, and that, 
in the event of any further movements of troops tak- 
ing place within the above-mentioned time in the 
nearer directions of the borders of the Republic, the 
Government would be compelled to regard that also 
as a formal declaration of war. 

On the 11th of October, Mr. Greene brought the 
reply of the British Government to the effect that 
the conditions demanded by the Government of the 
South African Republic were such as Her Majesty's 
Government deemed it impossible to discuss. At 
the same time he asked for his passports, in order to 
enable him to leave the country. And so, in spite of 
all the concessions, all the patience and indulgence 
of the Republic, the war broke out. The Volksraad, 
which was still sitting, adjourned when it became 
evident that hostihties were soon to begin; both our 
Volksraad and that of the Orange Free State unani- 
mously declared themselves ready to risk their lives 

306 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

and property for their rights and for their liberty; 
and both repeated this vow in their last session during 
the turmoil of war.^ 

The course and the vicissitudes of the war do not 
come within the scope of these Memoirs, since I took 
no personal part in the fighting. I had a different 
work before me, which kept me employed day and 
night. All looked to me for advice, hints and con- 
solation. Daily I sent off telegrams to all the com- 
mandos, encouraging, advising and exhorting the 
burghers. These labors fully occupied the mornings 
from eight to twelve and the evenings from two to 
four or five o'clock. 'Not till then did I leave the 
Government buildings. I went to bed at eight, only 
to get up again at eleven to go through the telegrams 
that had come to hand. I rose once more at two, to 
inspect any dispatches that had arrived in the mean- 
time, and it was often four o'clock before I could seek 
my rest again. In the later stage of the war, when 
the federal troops were being driven back on every 
side, my sleep was interrupted regularly three times 
every night, and frequently as often as four times, 
in order that I might deal with the telegrams without 
delay. I was thankful for every success and did not 

^ Official reports of President Kruger's speech at the closing of the 
First and Second Volksraad and of the speeches of both Presidents at 
the last meetings of the Volksraads of the Transvaal and of the Orange 
Free State wiU be found in the Appendix, — Note by the Editor of the Ger- 
man Edition. 

307 



THE MEMOIKS OF PAUL KRUGER 

lose courage when reverses were announced, as 
many of my telegrams could show, had they not been 
scattered to the winds. 

After the relief of Ladysmith, I went myself to 
Natal to exhort the burghers to keep courage. At 
Glencoe, where the burghers had once more taken up 
their position, I addressed them in a long speech, 
pointing out the urgency of keeping up the fight. 
General Joubert spoke to them to the same effect. 

I had scarcely returned to Pretoria, when I went 
to Bloemfontein in order to proceed thence, by 
wagon, to Poplar Grove, on the Modder River, 
where I intended also to address and encoui'age the 
burghers. But I could not come so far, for I had 
only just reached General De Wet, when I was 
obhged to go back, as French, with his mounted 
troops, had effected a turning movement and I was in 
danger of being cut off. Heavy fighting took place 
on my arrival, for the English general in command 
knew of my presence, and I had only just time to re- 
tire: I had hardly crossed the Modder River, when 
French arrived with his cavalry. Here, however, De 
la Rey, who had just arrived with his staff, flung him- 
self against him and held him in check until the laager 
and guns were safe. As I resumed my homeward 
course, the shells were flying all around me, and one 
fell just behind the cart in which I was seated. I 
was, therefore, obliged to return to Pretoria, but 

308 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

went straight on to Kroonstad, there to encourage 
the burghers and attend a general council of war. 
It was on this occasion that the deeply-lamented Col- 
onel de Villebois-Mareuil received his promotion to 
General of the Foreign Legion. 

Shortly after, I received a heavy blow through the 
death of General Joubert, who had worked together 
with me for so many years in building up the Repub- 
lic. His death was profoundly mourned by the 
whole people, and there is no doubt that the decease 
of this upright lover of his country exercised a dis- 
couraging influence upon his f ellow-bui'ghers. For- 
tunately he had, before his death, appointed a suc- 
cessor in the present Commandant General Louis 
Botha, who has shown that the confidence placed in 
him by the dying general was well deserved. 

Shortly before the capture of Bloemfontein, the 
two Governments resolved to send a deputation to 
Europe to endeavor to secure intervention. This 
deputation consisted of Mr. Abraham Fischer, a 
member of the Executive Raad of the Orange Free 
State, who had taken a prominent part in the nego- 
tiations during the crisis, and who now acted as a 
delegate for both states, with Mr. C. H. Wessels, 
President of the Volksraad of the Orange Free State, 
for his own state, and Mr. A. D. W. Wolmarans, a 
member of the Executive Raad of the South African 
Republic, for his state. All three were men in whom 

309 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

the Government and the people of both Repubhcs 
placed the greatest confidence. 

A short time before the surrender of Cronje, the 
two Governments sent a dispatch to Lord Salisbury, 
in which they declared that the Republics were will- 
ing to make peace if their independence, the only 
thing for which they were fighting, were acknow- 
ledged. Lord Salisbury replied that he could not 
accept this proposal; for the Republics were not to 
be allowed to retain a shred of independence: and 
that after he had declared, only three months earlier, 
in a public speech, that England sought no gold- 
fields and no territory. 

Although the preceding days made heavy claims 
upon me, those that followed made even more stren- 
uous demands. After the relief of Maf eking, when 
the British troops began to stream into the Republic 
from every side, it became daily more clear that, in 
my old age, I should have to leave my wife, my home 
and all that was dear to me, in order to seek a refuge 
in the east of the Republic, and there begin the 
struggle anew. The thought of this departure lay 
heavy upon my heart, the more so as my wife was so 
old and weak that I could not think of taking 
her with me. The doctor had declared that such a 
journey as this would mean death to her; and yet 
I felt sure that I should never see her again in this 
life. The day of our separation after a long and 

sio 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

happy marriage came ever closer and closer, and an 
uncertain future, full of dangers and privations, 
faced me. It was with this knowledge that I opened 
the Volksraad at the beginning of May/ Many of 
the best-known figures in public life were already at 
rest in their graves, and their seats in the Volksraad 
stood empty. 

Lord Roberts had at last pushed forward to Jo- 
hannesburg, and, as we were informed that he in- 
tended, with a flying column, to cut the Delagoa 
Railway line to the east of Pretoria, it was resolved 
that I should leave Pretoria with the Government 
and transfer the seat of government to the east of 
the Republic. On the afternoon of my last day at 
Pretoria, 29 May, 1900, while my things were being 
packed, I received the American lad, Jimmy Smith, 
who brought me an address, in which thousands of 
school-boys in Philadelphia, the children of a city 
which was the first to declare its independence of 
Great Britain, " sent a message of sympathy to the 
leader of the people which was now engaged in de- 
fending its independence against the same nation." 
He also handed me a Transvaal flag which had been 
embroidered in America. I thanked the boy and the 
American gentlemen who had accompanied him, 
and, one hour later, when it was already dark, I drove 

1 For President Kruger's speeches delivered on this occasion, see the Ap- 
pendix. They show that he had not lost confidence. — Note by the Editor 
of the German Edition. 

311 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGEK 

with a few faithful friends to Eerste Fabrieken, the 
first station on the eastern hne. From there I went 
by railway, over Middelburg, to Machadodorp, where 
the seat of government was provisionally estabhshed. 
I lived in my saloon-carriage, to which a telegraph 
apparatus had been fitted: my work was no less ar- 
duous than at Pretoria, and I was constantly sending 
telegrams to encourage the burghers in the fight. 

The first days of June are among the darkest of 
my fife. On the 5th of June, Lord Roberts occupied 
Pretoria, and many of the burghers, discouraged by 
recent events, listened to the tempting proclama- 
tions by which that general sought to seduce them 
from their allegiance and their duty to the land and 
people, laid down their arms and took the oath of 
neutrality. I warned and admonished them, for my 
faith in the future was still unshaken. On the 7th 
of June, I sent the following telegram to all the 
ofiicers : 

Tell the burghers that it will avail them nothing to lay 
down their arms, as Lord Roberts has issued a proclamation 
that in future he will release no more burghers on their oaths, 
since he has found that the burghers continue to fight in spite 
of their oaths. He has moreover decided to take all male 
persons above twelve years of age prisoners, whether they 
be armed or not. If they are taken prisoners, they will be 
sent to St. Helena. Children also are therefore no longer 
safe. We have resolved to fight to the end. Be faithful and 
fight in the name of the Lord, for they who flee and leave 
their positions or run away from commando are fleeing straight 
to St. Helena. 

312 



KRUGEH'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

And in longer telegrams I set forth the religious 
grounds for my hopeful persistency/ 

As Machadodorp is one of the coldest places in 
the Transvaal, and at that time I was suffering 
greatly from my eyes, I yielded to the pressure of the 
bui'ghers and moved on to Waterval Onder, which 
lies on the Eland River, among high mountains, and 
enjoys a very mild climate in winter. Here I oc- 
cupied a scantily-furnished little house, where I spent 
the happiest two months that I have known since my 
departure from Pretoria. The seat of government, 
however, remained at Machadodorp; and the State 
Secretary and the members of the Executive Raad 
also remained there, but came every morning by train 
to Waterval Onder to the sittings of the Executive 
Raad, in order to attend to the current business. 
From here, too, were issued the decrees and requisi- 
tions, the provisos for furlough, the enactments 
against dilatory burghers and officials, and the orders 
for the reorganization of the army, and the necessary 
measures were taken to frustrate the proclamations 
of the enemy and their consequences. Towards the 
end of August, President Steyn and his escort ar- 
rived at Waterval Onder to discuss the position in 
the country. 

It was at about the same time that Lord Roberts, 
acting in conjunction with General Sir Redvers Bul- 

^ Some of these telegrams will be found in the Appendix. 
313 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

ler, delivered his decisive attack on Botha's positions 
at Dahnanutha. The result is well known. After the 
burghers had fought for eight days like lions and de- 
feated every attempt of the enemy to break through, 
Buller at last succeeded in capturing a weak post oc- 
cupied by 79 men of the Johannesburg police and 
in thus forcing his way into our men's positions. 
Botha had about 4,000 men and had to defend a line 
that extended for over 30 miles. Roberts attacked 
him with over 50,000 men and a mass of heavy guns. 
The result of this battle made it clear to the Com- 
mandant General and the other officers that it was 
not possible for that small force of burghers to repel 
the enemy or to continue to fight him in the way they 
had done hitherto, and that it was better to send the 
President away, so as to leave the commandos freer 
in their movements. We moved on to INTelspruit, a 
station on the Delagoa Railway, about half-way be- 
tween Waterval Onder and the Portuguese frontier. 
The removal of all the baggage, wagons, carts, 
horses, mules and so forth gave great difficulty, but 
the excellent manner in which the Netherlands South 
African Railway Company had so far satisfied every 
demand made upon it was now repeated. On arriv- 
ing at the spot which had been selected as the seat 
of government, we received Lord Roberts's procla- 
mation annexing the South African Republic. I at 
once issued a counter-proclamation: 

314 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

Whereas, in the month of October 1899, an unjust war was 
forced upon the people of the South African Republic and the 
Orange Free State by Great Britain, and those two small Re- 
publics have for ten months maintained and are still main- 
taining an unequal contest against the mighty British Em- 
pire; 

Whereas I am informed that a certain proclamation, dated 
1 September 1900, has been issued by Lord Roberts, Field- 
Marshal, Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in South 
Africa, stating that the South African Republic has been con- 
quered by Her Majesty's troops and that the South African 
Republic is annexed to the British Empire, while the forces 
of the South African Republic are still in the field and the 
South African Republic has not been conquered, and the afore- 
said proclamation is therefore opposed to international law; 

And whereas the independence of the South African Republic 
has been recognized by nearly all the civilized Powers; 

Whereas I deem it desirable immediately to inform all whom 
it may concern that the aforesaid proclamation is not recog- 
nized by the Government and people of the South African 
Republic : 

Now I, Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, State Presi- 
dent of the South African Republic, by the advice and con- 
sent of the Executive Raad, in accordance with Article 147 of 
its Minutes of the 3d of September 1900, do hereby pro- 
claim, in the name of the independent people of this Re- 
public, that the aforesaid annexation is not recognized, but is 
by these presents declared null and void. 

The people of the South African Republic is and remains a 
free and independent people and refuses to submit to British 
rule. 

Given imder my hand at Nelspruit in the South African 
Republic on the third day of the month of September 1900. 

S. J. P. Kruger. 

Meanwhile, it became evident that the hope that 
we should be able to arrest the enemy's progress in 

315 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

the mountains, was futile, thanks to his overwhehning 
superiority of numbers ; and, when the enemy began 
to advance from every side on Nelspruit, a decisive 
step became necessary. A council was called, con- 
sisting of the members of the Transvaal and Orange 
Free State Governments and a number of officers, 
including the Commandant General, and it resolved 
to send me to Europe as a delegate, to endeavor to 
promote the cause of the RepubHcs. General and 
Vice-President S chalk Burger was to hold office as 
Acting State President during my absence. A proc- 
lamation was issued, giving notice of this resolution 
in the following terms: 

Whereas the great age of His Honor the State President 
renders it impossible for His Honor to continue to accompany 
the commandos; 

And whereas the Executive Raad is persuaded that His 
Honor's invaluable services can still be profitably employed 
in the interests of the land and people: 

Now the Executive Raad does hereby resolve to grant His 
Honor a six months' furlough in order to proceed to Europe 
and there promote our cause. His place will be filled, in ac- 
cordance with the law, by Mr. S. W. Burger, Vice-President. 

S. W. Burger, 

Vice-Preside7it. 
F. W. Reitz, 
State Secretary. 

Government Office, Nelspruit, 10 September IQOO. 

If my departure from Pretoria was a bitter blow 
to me, my departure, under such sorrowful circum- 

316 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

stances, from the land to which I had devoted my 
life was doubly bitter. I saw it swarming with the 
enemy, who, in his arrogance, was already declaring 
that the war was over and that only guerrilla bands 
now infested the country. I had to bid good-by to 
the men who had stood beside me for so many years 
and to leave my country and my people, my gray- 
haired wife, my children, my friends and the little 
band of lion-hearted fighters who, surrounded as 
they were on every side, had now to make their way 
through an uninhabited district to the north of the 
Republic, there to reorganize and recommence the 
struggle. But I had no choice. I must either sub- 
mit to the decision or allow mj^self to be taken pris- 
oner. My age prevented me from riding and it was, 
therefore, impossible for me to accompany the com- 
mandos further. On the other hand, it was a conso- 
lation to leave the Government in the hands of such 
true men as Schalk Burger, Reitz, Louis Botha and 
De la Rey, and I knew the loyal support which they 
would receive from the noble President Steyn. On 
the evening of the 10th September we took leave of 
one another at Nelspruit and I was left alone with 
the escort which the Executive Raad had given me 
for my protection. 

On the next da}^ after spending the night at 
Crocodile Poort, I began my long pilgrimage to Eu- 
rope, a journey the result of which neither had nor 

S17 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

could have been anticipated. From Crocodile Poort 
I traveled in the private railway-carriage of the man- 
ager of the Netherlands South African Railway 
Company. At Hectorspruit I waited a few hours 
for President Steyn and a few other friends, who 
had come there to take leave of me, and then con- 
tinued my journey to Lorenzo Marques over Komati 
Poort, the last station in the Republic, past the fron- 
tier station, Resano Garsea, where the director of 
the Portuguese railway took charge of the train. 
At Lorenzo Marques, the train was not stopped at 
the station, but shunted to a siding, so that, as dark- 
ness had already set in, I was able to reach Consul 
General Pott's house unobserved. It was my inten- 
tion to remain there until I could embark for Europe 
on board the first outgoing steamer, which would 
have been the steamship Herzog, of the German 
East African Line. But, on the next day, the Por- 
tuguese Governor arrived and said that he had been 
instructed to take me to his own house as the guest 
of the Portuguese Government. When I showed 
some hesitation, the Governor declared that I must 
accompany him at once and that, if I refused, he 
must employ force. This action on the part of the 
Portuguese Government must undoubtedly be as- 
cribed to the pressure brought to bear upon it by the 
British Government, for the Portuguese Governor 
governed only in name: the real governor was the 

318 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

British consul at Delagoa Bay. Governor Machado, 
who was probably fulfilling a disagreeable task 
much against his own wish, treated me with great 
kindness, but would not allow me to move without 
accompanying me. ]N^one of the members of my es- 
cort, who were also quartered at the Governor's 
house, was allowed to set foot in the town unless ac- 
companied by an aide-de-camp; and even then they 
were not permitted to enter into conversation with 
any one. At first, the two gentlemen who traveled 
with me, as well as a few other friends, were at least 
allowed to visit me ; but this, too, was very soon for- 
bidden, on the ground, as we were informed, that 
the British consul had complained. This situation 
lasted some weeks, during the whole of which time 
I was practically a prisoner in the Governor's house, 
and it was there that I kept my seventy-fifth birth- 
day. I was not allowed to receive the congratula- 
tions of the burghers who thronged the town and 
who were reduced to shouting good luck to me from 
the street outside. 

The first ray of light that broke through this night 
of affliction was the Queen of Holland's offer to 
carry me to Europe on a man-of-war, an act which 
was appreciated in the highest degree by the whole 
Boer nation. Now at least all uncertainty was re- 
moved as to my being able to pursue my journey. 
As the ship, however, was still at some distance from 

319 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Delagoa Bay, I was not able to embark until the 
21st of October, and then the Gelderland, whose cap- 
tain and officers received me with every mark of 
friendship and loving-kindness, had first to take in 
coal. The journey from Delagoa Bay to Dar-es- 
Salam, where the Gelderland arrived on the morn- 
ing of the fifth day, passed off very well. It is true 
that, at first, I suffered a little from sea-sickness, for 
the first time in my life ; but I was soon able to light 
up my pipe again, a certain proof that the sickness 
was past. At Dar-es-Salam, some German officials 
came on board and invited me to a dinner which they 
wished to give in my honor. I begged, however, to 
be excused, in view of the sorrowful circumstances 
of my country. The same thing happened at Dji- 
bouti, where we arrived on the 2d of November. 
From here the journey was continued to Suez. 
Every ship that passed the Gelderland saluted, and 
I was cheered by the passengers on board those which 
came close enough. One French ship even went 
out of her course to salute the Gelderland, and the 
only exceptions were the majority of the English 
ships, of which, at one time, as many as five were in 
sight, near Sardinia. From Suez we proceeded to 
Port Said, where we stopped to take in coal. The 
voyage from here to Marseilles was exceedingly un- 
pleasant, quite apart from the number of newspaper 
correspondents who made fruitless attempts to in- 

320 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

terview me. A storm raged which sent the waves 
flying over the ship; and the vessel pitched and 
rolled to such an extent that my sickness returned. 

At the end of the voyage the captain of the Gel- 
derland invited my friends and myself to an official 
dinner. The saloon was decorated with the Dutch 
colors and with a Transvaal banner, the same flag 
which the American school-boys had sent me, with 
an address, from Philadelphia. In consequence of 
the bad weather we arrived one day late, on the 22d 
of November, in the harbor of Marseilles. 

A few days before our arrival, the members of 
the South African deputation, with the exception 
of Wolmarans, who was unwell, had gone to Mar- 
seilles, with Dr. Leyds and some other gentlemen, 
to receive me. Professor Hamel, of the University 
of Groningen, kindly acted as interpreter. From 
the deck of the man-of-war, to which the members 
of the deputation put out in a long-boat, one saw 
nothing but one mass of people, all cheering and 
waving their handkerchiefs. Even the steamers 
lying at anchor in the harbor swarmed with people. 

I went on shore after cordially thanking the cap- 
tain of the ship and his officers for the kindness and 
consideration which they had shown me. I still re- 
tain the pleasantest recollections of my voyage on 
the Gelderland. Thousands of people were shout- 
ing their greetings with the loudest enthusiasm. 

21 321 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

The president of the Committee for the Indepen- 
dence of the Boers, which had been lately formed, 
" interpreted the feelings of all Marseilles," as he 
himself said when he welcomed me and added that 
the enthusiasm which I beheld around me would 
convey more to me than any words which he could 
utter. I declared that I gratefully accepted the wel- 
come offered me, although, in view of the sorrow in 
which my country was wrapped, I had not come in 
order to be festively received. 

" The war in South Africa," I continued, " has 
exceeded the limits of barbarism. I have fought 
against many barbarous Kaffir tribes in the course 
of my life ; but they are not so barbarous as the Eng- 
lish, who have burnt our farms and driven oin* 
women and children into destitution, without food 
or shelter. I hope that God will not abandon the 
Boer nation. But if the Transvaal and the Free 
State are to lose their independence, it shall only 
happen when both nations have been annihilated 
with their women and their children." 

On the road to the hotel stood thousands of peo- 
ple, who cheered me continually as I passed and, 
during the afternoon, a number of deputations came 
to welcome me. 

This splendid reception was a thorn in the side of 
the English at Marseilles, and they tried to spoil the 
procession by throwing coppers from the windows 

322 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

of a hotel among the populace, in order to raise a 
tumult. But this proceeding narrowly escaped hav- 
ing serious results, for the people, furious at this 
behavior, stormed the hotel, so that police protection 
had to be sent for. 

Immediately after my arrival, I telegraphed to 
President Loubet to salute him and to thank him 
for the sympathy of his Government and people. 
The Prefect of Marseilles called on me on behalf of 
the President. 

On the 24th of November, I started by special 
train for Paris, and was cordially cheered through- 
out the journey. The train stopped at one or two 
stations, and great crowds had gathered to welcome 
me. I stepped out of the train at Lyons, to receive 
the welcome of the crowd, and the mayor handed me 
a beautiful medal as a souvenir. At Dijon, where 
we spent the night, the drive to the hotel was accom- 
plished to a salute of guns. 

On the next morning, we continued our journey 
to Paris, where a solemn reception took place and 
several speeches were delivered. In reply to the ad- 
dress of the Vice-President of the Municipality of 
Paris, I said that, " as soon as I had set foot on Pa- 
risian soil, I had acquired fresh confidence, for the 
arms of the city, a ship floating on the waves, assured 
me that the Republics would not go under." 

On the way to the hotel, immense masses of peo- 

S23 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

pie had gathered, who cried, " Long live Kruger! 
Arbitration for ever! " and continually flung nose- 
gays into the carriage. The people in front of the 
hotel called out for me to appear on the balcony, 
and I had to do so three or four times a day, before 
the crowds would disperse. 

At four o'clock in the afternoon. President Lou- 
bet received me at the Ely see, sending me a com- 
pany of cuirassiers as an escort, and immediately 
afterwards paid me a return visit. 

During my stay in Paris, from the 26th of No- 
vember till the 1st of December, I visited some of 
the sights, including the Eiffel Tower, the Hotel de 
Ville, the International Exhibition, at which I was 
greatly touched to read the inscriptions on the walls 
of the Transvaal pavilion, conta;in|ing every good 
wish for the Boers. In the sessions-hall of the Hotel 
de Ville, where the whole Town Council had assem- 
bled, the chairman expressed the admiration of the 
people for the heroism of the Republics and said 
that, " if the Republics were silent, the nations must 
speak," and thus bring about arbitration. 

The president of the Conseil General also made 
a speech. In my reply, I said that, " if the Boers, 
who were not yet defeated, but would go on fighting 
much longer, could hear of the reception which had 
been given me in France, they would be still further 
strengthened in their resolve to keep up the strug- 

324 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

gle." I also thanked the press for the light which 
they had thrown on the English methods of warfare 
and added: 

" If you were able to send reporters straight to 
the seat of war, they would stand astounded at the 
atrocities that are being perpetrated by England." 

After receiving a series of deputations, I left 
Paris on the 1st of December, amid scenes of undi- 
minished enthusiasm and escorted by the authorities 
and private societies, for Cologne. On the way to 
the French frontier, the same scenes were repeated 
which had marked the journey from Marseilles to 
Paris. At every station where we stopped, I was re- 
ceived by great crowds. The same thing happened 
in Belgium. The enthusiasm which I witnessed in 
France not only delighted me, but confirmed me in 
my hope that my journey would not be in vain. 

This hope, however, was doomed to be very soon 
frustrated. On the evening of the same day, we 
reached Cologne, where an enthusiasm reigned such 
as Cologne had, perhaps, never beheld before. Un- 
fortunately, an accident occurred at the railway sta- 
tion which cost one of the spectators his life. The 
crowd was such that two people fell through an 
opening on to the platform, and one of them broke 
his leg and died from the effects of the fall. Owing 
to the size of the crowds I had to drive by a circuitous 
route to my hotel. Here, shortly after my arrival, 

325 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

I received a telegram from the German Emperor, 
saying that His Majesty could not receive me at 
that time, as he had a hunting engagement. We 
then resolved to proceed to the Hague; but, before 
leaving Cologne, I received a series of deputations, 
who gave me every mark of sympathy. I also re- 
ceived the wife of the man who had died of the acci- 
dent at the station and assured her of my heartfelt 
condolence. I did not miss the opportunity of vis- 
iting the famous cathedral. 

It is really not necessary for me to say that 
throughout my journey through Germany and 
Holland I met everywhere with the same sympa- 
thy for the cause of the Boers as at Cologne. At 
station after station, I was received by the represen- 
tatives of the different towns, in addition to corpo- 
rations and societies with their banners and badges. 
The train drew up at the Hague in the even- 
ing, when it was already growing dusk. The 
precincts of the railway station and all the streets 
leading to the hotel at which I was to stay were 
closely packed with an endless crowd of cheering 
people. I had telegraphed to the Queen, on reach- 
ing the Dutch frontier, to offer her my homage. 
Immediately after my arrival at the hotel. Her 
Majesty's ministers called upon me, and, on the 
next day, I went to the Court, to wait upon the 
Queen and to thank her for her great kindness in 

326 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

sending a man-of-war to bring me to Europe. I 
was afterwards invited to dine with the Queen and 
Her Majesty's Consort, the Prince of the Nether- 
lands, called on me at the hotel. 

After a short delay, I paid a visit to Amsterdam, 
where a great reception was held in the Paleis voor 
Volksvlyt and a solemn service in the principal 
church. On returning to the Hague, where I had 
not originally intended to stay, since it was neces- 
sary that I should as soon as possible consult a good 
physician about the condition of my eyes, I fell seri- 
ously ill: I had probably caught a cold, which very 
soon developed into inflammation of the lungs. I 
recovered, however, and proceeded to Utrecht, where 
I stayed for two months and a half; during which 
period I underwent a successful operation on both 
eyes, eJBFected by Professor Snellen and my own 
physician. Dr. Heymans. From there, I moved to 
Hilversum, where I lived for eight months, at the 
Villa Casa Cara, with my suite. Our stay was inter- 
rupted by a visit of some weeks to A. D. W. Wol- 
marans at Scheveningen and by a long-promised 
visit to some of the other Dutch towns. At Rotter- 
dam, I was shown a tree which I had planted in the 
Zoological Gardens in 1884, and took a trip up the 
Maas, on board the Lehmann, which the Fop Smit 
Steamship Company had placed at my disposal. I 
was proud, on this occasion, to see the old church at 

327 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

Dordrecht where the Synod of 1618 to 1619 was held 
which exercised so great an influence upon the 
Church to which I belong. I also revisited Kam- 
pen, the Mecca of the Protestant Church. In both 
towns my reception was of the most cordial nature 
imaginable. 

Shortly after my return to Hilversum, I received 
the heaviest blow of my life. A cablegram informed 
me that my wife was dead. In my profound sor- 
row I was consoled by the thought that the separa- 
tion was only temporary and could not last long; 
and my faith gave me the strength to write a letter 
of encouraging consolation to my daughter, Mrs. 
Malan. Wolmarans invited me to spend another 
fortnight with him at Scheveningen, to distract my 
thoughts a little. I then went back to Hilversimi, 
where I lived in absolute retirement, interrupted 
only by the necessary conferences, and devoted my- 
self entirely to the perusal of my Bible. 

At the commencement of the winter, on the 10th 
of December 1901, I moved to the ViUa Oranjelust, 
on the Maliebaan, at Utrecht. Here I received the 
news of De la Rey's brilliant victory over Lord 
Methuen. I rejoiced exceedingly at the victory, but, 
when some one observed, during the reading of the 
news, that it was to be hoped that De la Rey would 
keep Methuen a prisoner, I said: 

" I could not approve of that, and I hope that 

328 



KRUGER'S FOURTH PRESIDENCY 

De la Rey will release him without delay; for we 
Boers must behave as Christians to the end, however 
uncivilized the way in which the English treat us 
may be." 

When I learnt that Methuen was released, I ex- 
pressed my sincere gratification. A series of fur- 
ther favorable tidings arrived from home, so that 
the position of things seemed to justify the greatest 
hope. 

For the rest, I had, throughout the war, replied 
to every inquiry from the scene of war that my con- 
fidence was stiU unshaken, but that it must be left 
entirely to the generals in the field to decide 
whether and how, under the stress of circum- 
stances, they wished to alter their previous reso- 
lutions. During the peace negotiations, I had only 
one answer to all the questions put to me as to 
what I thought of peace, namely, that all would hap- 
pen as God wished. And, when peace was at last 
concluded, I applied to the generals the Bible text 
2 Cor. viii. 3: 

" For to their power, I bear record, yea, and be- 
yond their power they were willing of themselves." 

Nor, in so far as I myself am concerned, will I 
consent to lose courage because the peace is not such 
as the burghers wished. For, quite apart from the 
fact that the bloodshed and the fearful sufi'erings 
of the people of the two Republics are now ended, 

329 



THE MEMOIRS OF PAUL KRUGER 

I am convinced that God does not forsake His peo- 
ple, even though it may often appear so. Therefore 
I resign myself to the will of the Lord. I know that 
He will not allow the afflicted people to perish. He 
is the Lord and all hearts are in His hand and He 
turneth them whithersoever He will. 



330 




STEPHANUS JOHANNES PAULUS KRUGER 

About 1865 



From an old-fashioned silver-plate 
pliotograpli, taken by Mr. Jeffreys, of 
Cape Town. It was given by Kiiiger 
(who was at the time Field Cornet 
of Potchefstroora) to Mr. Jeffrey s's 
father at Potchefstroom, about "the 
year 1865. Mr. Jeft'reys believes that 
the old plate was a positive (instead 
of a negative, from which photographs 
are printed nowadays), consequently, 
the left side conies out as the right. 
This photograph is the only one show- 
ing the loss of President Kniger's 
thumb. In the other photographs 
he always seems to hide the left 
hand, and the right thumb comes 
out clearly in some. In this print the 
right hand seems to be thumbless 
owing to the inversion of the plate. 



APPENDIX 



APPENDIX A 

Speeches delivered at the Solemn IisTAUGtiBA- 
TioN OF His Honor S. J. P. Kruger as State 
President or the South African Republic, 
ON Thursday, 12 May 1898. 

Mr. President of the First Volksraad addressed 
His Honor the State President in the following 
words : 

Mr. State President, 

I welcome you in the name of the First and 
Second Volksraad on the occasion of this solemnity, 
at which you have for the fourth time taken the oath 
of office as State President of the South African 
Republic. 

Already fifteen years have passed since you fii'st 
appeared as the head of this state. Nay, what do 
I say? — it is not only for fifteen years that you have 
served the country; you have also served it in other 
capacities, such as that of a member of the Trium- 
virate and as Vice-President, to take office later as 
State President. As I and many others know, the 
task of serving the country was laid upon your 
shoulders from your youth ; and while you were still 
young it was the Lord's will to place you in a posi- 
tion where you could be of political service to this 

333 



APPENDIX 

country. You have served the country for no short 
time, and you have naturally encountered many dif- 
ficulties and obstacles in your path, because, as we 
know, man's path, as God leads him upon earth, is 
not one of roses. Many days of adversity came and 
many dark and difficult days, as all must admit; but 
we, as a Christian people, must ever believe that it 
was God's will and guidance. 

Your Honor, I feel, and the Raad and all those 
who labor in the field of politics feel, that it is no 
easy task that to-day has once more been laid upon 
your shoulders, that of acting as the head of this 
young state, which has always to fight so great a 
struggle. I seem, however, to see clearly that our 
consolation lies in this, that the people of the South 
African Republic remain true to you and cling to 
you. It must of course be a great comfort to you 
to think of the last elections, which show how the 
people remain attached to your person and that they 
still place their entire confidence in you, because they 
are naturally convinced of the excellence of your 
government during the fifteen years that you have 
served the country as State President. A great 
proof of this is the great interest which the public 
shows in seeing you, who are now full of years, once 
more invested, by the taking of your oath of office, 
as State President. 

I sincerely congratulate you, Mr. State President, 
in the name of the First and Second Volksraad, and 
I would add that, as Christians, we must always fix 
our hopes on the Lord, for, if the Lord were to leave 
us to ourselves, to rule the country according to our 



APPENDIX 

own wisdom and understanding, we should have to 
succumb and to yield up everything, for our own 
understanding does not give us the penetration re- 
quired to govern the country. But there is one thing 
that I know and that I may say, which is that you 
know your God and that you daily consult your 
Creator, and we, as Christians, are always with you 
on this point, to ask the Lord for understanding, 
wisdom and strength. We know what it means when 
a man is unable to see through a single moment and 
often his eye becomes so dimmed that it seems as 
though dark clouds were hanging before it ; but God 
has always shown us the light again and thus also 
shown Himself to be our Counselor, who leads us 
according to His counsel. This faith in God and that 
proved attachment of the people to yom* person will, 
I think, be your comfort on this day. May God, 
while lending you His aid, also vouchsafe you His 
grace and His blessing. The people continue to be 
faithful to you and to stand by you. Therefore, 
in the name of the First and Second Volksraad, I wish 
Your Honor God's best blessing, and I hope and 
trust that God may spare you in our midst and grant 
you the strength that you may require, and that my 
prayer may be heard so that, by God's strength, you 
may be enabled to fulfil yoiu- arduous task. 

And we and the people also trust that God will 
guide you and that you will, as you always have 
done, protect the rights of the people, such as the 
independence of the country, that have been placed 
in your hands. 

I wish Your Honor, in the name of this body, 

335 



APPENDIX 

understanding, wisdom and strength. May God 
strengthen you and aid you in your old days 
to fulfil your difficult task and may we always 
work together in harmony. I venture, in the name 
of the Volksraad, to promise you that the Raad will 
meet and assist you, in every possible way, to sup- 
port you with all its strength, as this body always 
does, because we know that we have placed the gov- 
ernment of our country in trustworthy hands. 
Therefore I promise you the best support of the 
Volksraad, and I hope that the good God will grant 
that the work of the Volksraad and the Government 
may be bound together by fraternal ties, for, so long 
as the Executive Raad and the Volksraad act with 
wisdom and work together, hand in hand, like 
brothers, I do not doubt that the promise will be 
fulfilled to us: " Where true love reigns, God gives 
His blessing." 
I have spoken. 

The President of the Volksraad, then turning to 
the assembled multitude, spoke as follows: 

Inhabitants of the Country, People of the 
South African Republic, 

I present to you His Honor Stephen John Paul 
Kruger, State President of the South African Re- 
public, who has once more taken the oath in that 
capacity before the First Volksraad (tJiree cheers). 
Burghers, I think this is a solemn day for you 
and me. 

Here stands our State President. For fifteen 

336 



APPENDIX 

years he has served the country in that capacity ; and 
this year we have once more seen that the people of 
the South African RepubUc place their confidence in 
His Honor, as appears from the last elections (pro- 
longed cheers). 

Burghers, His Honor has obeyed your summons ; 
the public has called upon him and, in his old age, 
he has listened to your voice, because His Honor 
heard in it the voice of God. His Honor has taken 
the oath; but what is now our duty as burghers of 
the country? We must support His Honor with 
strength, obedience, love and harmony (cheers). 

When the people remain unanimous and when the 
people preserve the ties of aif ection that bind the 
Afrikander Nation, that gives His Honor strength 
to perform his duties of office with a more and more 
willing and cheerful mind ; but you know that, where 
discord reigns, this always makes it difficult and 
arduous for the head of a state. Therefore I hope 
and trust that every burgher will take this to heart 
and aid His Honor not onty with worldty assist- 
ance but also with his prayers to God. 

Let every burgher bow down to God and beseech 
the Lord to give strength and force to our State 
President, so that His Honor may be fortified 
by God's hand. For we know that we owe the 
existence of the South African Repubhc to 
the strength of our omniscient Creator, who has 
guided us. 

I hope, therefore, that you will be obedient and 
loyal to His Honor. 

I have spoken (prolonged cheers) . 

22 337 



APPENDIX 

His Honor the State President now spoke as 
follows : 

Mr. President of the First, Mr. President of 
THE Second, and Honorable Members of both 
the First and Second Volksraad, 

But first let me ask that the secretary take down 
my words, that my speech may not later, for one 
reason or another, be misunderstood. 

Honorable sirs, 

I stand here before you, in obedience to the voice 
of the people, in which I believe I recognize God's 
voice, in order once more, as State President, to take 
upon myself the government of the country. 

Honorable sirs, when I look back upon my past 
career, knowing, as I do, by experience all the bur- 
dens and great difficulties attached to this arduous 
post, I cannot but frankly confess that I consider 
myself incapable and blind : I repeat, incapable and 
blind. When I look back and see how the Lord has 
guided the people and that God has set the people 
free, then I know, now that I am to govern the 
people, what would follow if I were to falter, for I 
have not only to give an account to you honorable 
gentlemen, but also to God, and my life is short; 
I shall have to appear before Him, and when I think 
of that, my heart fails me, and I can only pray.^ 

His promise is that to them who expect aid 
and strength from the Lord He will teach the plain 
path, and him that f eareth the Lord He will guide. 

^ President Kruger here quoted a stanza from the Dutch 
hymnal. — Translator' s Note. 



APPENDIX 

He who acknowledges this in his heart looks to the 
Lord, our faithful God of the Covenant, for light, 
wisdom and divine strength. He will give us every- 
thing out of His infinite wealth of mercy. Yes, I 
trust in that faithful God of the Covenant, because 
He has so clearly led us along various paths. And 
so I accept this post in the fear of God and in all 
uprightness; yes, it is my innermost desire and the 
wish of my heart to live for Him and to govern the 
people according to His will. 

My earnest endeavor will be none other than to 
keep in view the welfare of the people and the 
progress, prosperity and independence of the coun- 
try. Honorable sirs, I shall scrupulously watch the 
circumstances of the country, in which we have some- 
times observed such swift and rapid progress; and 
in particular, I shall constantly see to it that in this 
inevitable progress, the independence of the country 
is not in the smallest degree endangered and also 
that not the smallest right is abandoned whose loss 
might undermine the independence of the country; 
for I should bring down a judgment on myself if 
our independence were violated through me. For 
God has so clearly led us that the blindest heathen 
and the greatest unbeliever must acknowledge that 
it was God's hand that gave us our independence. 

Honorable sirs, I rely upon you as the embodi- 
ment of the legislative power to support me in 
these my views and, in your wisdom, to suggest 
measures whereby the country may be maintained 
in its independence and prosperity in every quarter. 
And in particular, I rely upon you to take into 



APPENDIX 

earnest consideration the needs of all the inhabitants 
of the country, without distinction of persons or 
nationality. 

I have learned, with the deepest regret, that very 
great depression prevails in the gold-fields, mostly 
among the poorer and less well-to-do. I assure you 
of my sympathy with their fate, and I trust that 
this great depression may soon pass away. The 
Government are doing all that they can to assist the 
gold-fields, as is shown, first, by the decrease in the 
railway tariff by £200,000 ; secondly, by the decrease 
of the import duties on food and other articles that 
are required for the immediate use of the mines, by 
about £700,000; thirdly, by the order that has been 
issued to import natives of Mozambique as workmen, 
in order to assist the mines; fourthly, by the reduc- 
tion in the price of dynamite. You all know that, 
in 1893, when the contract was concluded for the 
erection of the dynamite factory, dynamite was im- 
ported at about £6 per case. The company reduced 
this price to £5, which was gradually reduced to 
£4i 5s. per case and has now again been brought 
down to <£3 15s., and I hope and trust to be able 
to reduce the price still further. I am still engaged 
upon this. As I have already said at public meet- 
ings, the dynamite factory was not erected to oppress 
the mining industry but to support and help it, and 
principally the weak mines, and I hope that these 
will keep going until I have succeeded, for both the 
mining industry and the dj^namite factory belong 
to the State and must support one another; and you 
may be convinced that I shall not swerve from this 

840 



APPENDIX 

determination, but shall succeed in making the dyna- 
mite cheap for the mines. 

I learn with deep regret that there are banks and 
other institutions in the gold-fields which are totally 
ruining the poor and less well-to-do. When, some 
years ago, the mines were flourishing, these people 
borrowed money and, I am told, on good security 
in order to extend their business; and now that a 
time of depression has come, the mortgages are being 
called in and they have to pay back the money, 
although the security is quite as good as before, and 
in so doing their property is sold beneath its value. 
If this be true, then those banks cannot be regarded 
otherwise than as godless and un-Christian; for they 
bring hunger and oppression upon the poor and 
force everything into the hands of the rich. Honor- 
able sirs, we abeady have the diamond-fields as a 
warning; and, if what I am informed of is true, 
the Volksraad will have to take measures to protect 
the poor and less well-to-do and the Government will 
be obliged to withdraw the licenses of those banks 
or to refuse to renew them ; for in this way they serve 
rather for the oppression and undermining of the 
poor than for their support. God sees all, and the 
Lord says : " Deliver the poor from the snare of 
the fowler." Such things may not exist among us. 

Then it has also come to my ears that contracts 
are being made in Europe with poor workmen who 
do not know but that the price of food is the same 
here as there, so that, when they arrive, they are 
caught in a trap, since they are not able to live on 
the wages named in the contract. I hope that you 

341 



APPENDIX 

will take measures that no contract made abroad will 
be binding here before it has been approved and con- 
firmed by an official appointed for the purpose, with 
the consent of both parties, the hirer and the hired. 
Such fraud and deception must not exist among us, 
though I hope that things are not as stated. 

Then, again, I am informed, honorable sirs, that 
companies are being floated here on properties which 
have not even been properly examined to see if they 
contain gold. Shares are sold and allotted in Europe 
to persons who do not know but that the ground is 
good and who do not discover until they come here 
that the property is valueless, and then the blame is 
cast upon the Government. The shareholders in 
Europe are as much entitled to the protection of the 
Government as the people here. I hope, therefore, 
that such rules will be made that no company can sell 
or allot its shares before the State Mineralogist or 
the State Engineer has examined the ground and 
issued his report; so that the European public may 
no longer be deceived and then thiuk that it is the 
fault of the Government. That must be prevented. 

In conclusion, let me say that there are two mat- 
ters which we must keep in view, and the second of 
these I mention because of God's Word. The first 
is that you must not grant any privileges which 
would injure our independence; and the second, that 
you must not close your ears to the lamentations of 
the poor, whether they are friends or foreigners, but 
must try to snatch them from the snare of the fowler. 
Then God will be in our midst and bless us. Yes, 
gentlemen, if we stand firm, and if you support me 

34,2 



APPENDIX 

in these matters, it will be found true that " concord 
gives strength," and God will be in our midst. 

Gentlemen of the Executive Raad, 

A word to you too. In the first place, I thank 
you sincerely for the support which you have given 
me hitherto, — for the support which you have given 
me, when necessary, in the discussion of affairs and 
for the support which you have given me in their 
execution. In the second place, I thank you, right 
honorable members, for all that you have done for 
the country and for your loyalty and your love of 
independence, which is such that you are ready to 
sacrifice your lives and properties for the independ- 
ence of your country. I thank you again, and I shall 
rejoice if you will continue in this course, supporting 
me when necessary, and if you will continue loyal 
to your country, so that we may stand up as one man 
for the independence that God has given us and be 
ready, all of us, to sacrifice our property with the 
burghers who have shown that they too are willing 
to sacrifice everything for that object. Let us re- 
main loyal and true, and do you pray for me, as I 
do for you, so that together we may work as the 
executive power. 

Right Honorable Sirs, Members of the Ex- 
ecutive Raad and Legislative Assembly of 
OUR Sister State, 

In the first place, I thank you for the interest 
which you have displayed by attending these pro- 
ceedings. We are very closely allied, and you agree 



APPENDIX 

with me that there is nothing better than peace and 
amity, especially between two sister states ; and when 
such co-operation exists, though the whole world 
rages God will bless us, for where love and concord 
reign He gives His blessing; we obtain His grace 
and He dwells amongst us for ever and ever. 

Then, turning to the Corps diplomatique. His 
Honor spoke as follows: 

Diplomatic and Consulae Officees of the 
roREiGN Powers, 

A word to you too. You are well aware, from my 
past career, that nothing is dearer to me than to live 
in peace and amity with foreign powers, each keep- 
ing the others' interests in view and all assisting one 
another as far as possible. It is my wish that this 
Government may so rule our State that the foreign 
powers will never have occasion to urge just griev- 
ances against us. I hope to continue in this way and 
it will always be my earnest endeavor to do so. 
Therefore I trust that I may receive your kind sup- 
port, for then the bonds of friendship will be drawn 
ever more closely between us; and where this co- 
operation, love and friendship prevail, God grants 
His blessing, for there He dwells in the midst of 
us. I wish you every blessing, each for his own 
country. May peace and friendship reign! I shall 
not fail, whenever you bring before me the interests 
of the State of which you are the diplomatic repre- 
sentative or the consul, to support you, so that no 
grievances may arise against us. 

844 



APPENDIX 

Now turning to the public. His Honor spoke as 
follows : 

All of you who stand before me, give me your 
attention that you may understand what I wish to 
say to you. In the first place, I wish to speak to 
the burghers of the country; in the second, to the 
new burghers who have been naturalized; in the 
third, to the foreigners who do not wish to change 
their nationality, but who wish to live among us as 
foreigners. 

Now THEN^ YOU BuRGHERS OF THE COUNTRY ! 

I have listened to your voices by accepting the 
appointment that has fallen to me by your election 
and again taking up the government of the country 
as State President. In the first place, I thank you 
for the confidence which you have placed in me. 
When I stand before you like this and look at your 
faces, I see many who have struggled, prayed and 
fought with me for the land of our abode and of 
our independence. Oh, then an array of thoughts 
comes up within me, all of which lead to one point, 
namely, that we must observe God's ways. To go 
over all these with you I have not now the time ; but 
I tinist that you will recall everything in your own 
thoughts and consider those ways, those proofs of 
the faith that God has shown us, — ^that He has res- 
cued us from oppression and given us other bless- 
ings ; and the ways in which God has punished us and 
we have been oppressed by our adversaries. Then 
we were weak, but unanimous, striving to obtain 

345 



APPENDIX 

assistance from God. Then we performed mighty 
deeds. Let me go back with you in thought to 
Paarde Kraal, where we were weak and helpless. 
But the people, the Volksraad and the Executive 
Raad were unanimous, one in mind and one in heart, 
to call on God for help, and then God led us through 
wonders and miracles. Burghers, let it be a lesson 
to us what concord did, in which God always blessed 
us ; let us therefore strive to stamp out discord, where 
it exists among us, and let us strive in unison to sup- 
press the evil spirit that leads us to opposition. I 
say that evil spirit; and mind, I exclude no one, not 
even myself, when I speak of the evil spirit that 
tempts us to break God's words and His command- 
ments. God's ninth commandment says: " Thou 
shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor ; " 
and it has truly become a habit among us for one 
brother to bear false witness against the other. Let 
none point with his finger at the other, but be up- 
right: let each place his hand in his own breast, and 
he will fijid that it comes out leprous. 

Let us stand in sincerity this day before God's 
countenance. We see that God's arm is stretched 
out: He is chastising us; and we shall find that 
everywhere we are breaking God's commandments. 
Let me quote an instance to you. Suppose that a 
father is rich and has many goods, and that his child 
has nothing and has to live on him; and his father 
gives him his goods and says : " Child, take these 
goods and use them, and I shall tell you when I want 
any of them, but do not abuse them." Then will not 
the father be angry when, after the son has gone 



APPENDIX 

away, he sends for some of his own goods, and the 
son will not give them up or gives only the worst? 
We often ask, Why does the Lord chastise us so? 
But is this not in order that we may return to Him? 
Yes, we really act towards God like one who makes 
a marriage contract. Our worldly goods hold us 
back and make us serve the world with them, while 
we want God to care for our souls. Let each of us, 
brothers, search his heart, so that we may become 
convinced of God's pleasure. Behold, God gives us 
worldly goods; but for what purpose? That we 
may live for the honor of God. Naked we came 
out and naked we shall return; we shall take 
nothing with us. God, therefore, gives us those 
goods, meat and clothes, that we may live; but also 
for churches, schools, the poor, etc., etc. What do 
we do, brothers and fellow-countrjnnen, what do we 
do? We give of our worst and commonest goods 
when there is need ; but see what happens when there 
is a circus, a play, a lottery or a race-meeting: then 
each encourages the other and even lends the other 
money to pursue worldly pleasures ; but, when God 
calls to us to put something into the poor-box to help 
to support the poor, there are many who go to chiu'ch 
but put nothing in the box or select the least they 
have. For what do they use their goods, — God's 
goods? Is it not true, what God says, that we rob 
Him, that we take His goods from Him and give 
them to the world and will not serve Him with them? 
See, brothers and fellow-countrymen; let every one 
who has an immortal soul look to it. See God's hand. 
Pestilence holds sway among men and beasts. The 

347 



APPENDIX 

locusts are eating the grass of the veldt and heavy 
droughts have prevailed and it grows worse from 
year to year and will grow worse from year to year 
until we turn back. God will not desert His people. 
Read Psalm 89/ The Lord will not retract that, but 
He chastises us to bring us nearer to Him. You 
will ask, " How can David say that he kissed the 
rod and with his heart? " Yes, if you love your 
father, and possess nothing, and have to live on him, 
when you have committed a sin and he says, " Leave 
my sight," you will go on your knees and say, " No, 
strike me but do not send me away." That is why 
David was able to say that when he lived in luxury 
he strayed from God; but that when He chastised 
him he returned to Him. He felt this in his heart. 

Let us feel this too, that the Lord rather chastises 
us than rejects us. Listen to His voice and, when 
you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, but 
let yourselves be guided; for why should you wish 
to die? Will you continue as you are doing? See 
how merciful the great God is. He says, " Return 
to me, you rebellious children, and I will heal your 
trespasses. Yes, try me," says God, " if you will 
not believe, and see if Heaven's windows do not 
open and shower down blessings upon you. I shall 
upbraid the devourer so that your barns may be filled 
and your fields filled with herds ; but turn to Me, you 
rebellious children, and I will heal your trespasses." 

Brothers and fellow-countrymen, do not think 
that I exclude myself. I have also much to do my- 

^ President Kruger here quoted two stanzas from the Dutch 
metrical psalm-book. — Translators Note. 

348 



APPENDIX 

self and I too am guilty in this matter; but let us 
confess our sins together before it is too late, and God 
will help us. 

You New Burghers, 

This last reminder was also for you and for all 
that have an immortal soul ; but still, a brief word to 
you separately. I call you new burghers, who have 
been naturalized and have given up your nationality. 
You have surely understood that God says : " No 
one can serve two masters, or else he will hold to the 
one and despise the other," and therefore you have 
given up the country of your birth, in all honor and 
decency, and accepted this country as a new mother- 
land. Endeavor now to agree with the old biu'ghers 
and to live with them in harmony, for then you also 
will be contributing to the progress of the country. 
Obey the laws of the land and, if you do so, you 
will have contributed greatly not only to the growth 
and prosperity of the country but also to your own 
interests; and, where harmony and concord reign, 
there God bestows His blessing. 

You Foreigners, 

A word also to you who do not wish to give up 
your country and to be naturalized, but prefer to 
live among us as foreigners. If you are obedient to 
the laws of the land, you are welcome among us. 
Seek your profit and endeavor to make your for- 
tunes: we shall help you and wish you well. Live 
with us, obey the laws and, in so far as possible, I 
assure you of my support, to the utmost of my power, 

349 



APPENDIX 

even if you do not wish to become burghers of the 
country; and then you will be promoting not only 
your interests, but ours as well. If you foreigners 
make yoiu* fortunes and work with us, you shall enjoy 
the same protection of the laws as any others; and, 
when you go, I shall be sorry to see such good friends 
departing; and, should you return again to make 
your fortune, you will be received with open arms; 
we shall rejoice that you come back to us, knowing 
that you are true friends to us, even if you would 
not give up your country. Be assured that all 
sensible men will aid and receive you, so that you too 
may live in joy and gladness in our midst (cheers). 

His Honor then turned to the judges and spoke 
as follows: 

Right Honorable the Chief Justice, Judges ocf 
THE Supreme Court and State Attorney, 

You are responsible for a weighty task, for, by 
virtue of your office, you represent the solidity of the 
State. It depends on you to confirm confidence in 
the country, but it also depends on you that con- 
fidence in the country should not be shocked. Let 
me first, however, stop to consider what concerns the 
confirming of confidence in the country; and do all 
of you, who stand here, note my words. Our an- 
cestors were led hither, clearly seeing that it was 
God's hand. All men, in their natural state, when 
there is no law, lead a licentious and reckless Kfe. 
When, in 1836, the people trekked across the Orange 
River, we came together, but it was not permitted 

350 



APPENDIX 

that we should live recklessly. We took God's Word 
as our guide on our trek and chose rulers to prevent 
crime and to decide all differences. It is evident 
that this did not proceed from our nature, but from 
God's hand; and so we came to the Vaal River. I 
will not now speak of the other trek, for that would 
take too long. The people then elected a Volksraad 
as the highest authority in the land, as the legislative 
power. That body was instructed to make fixed 
laws, since we had only the decisions and rules of 
the court martial. And so the honorable Volksraad 
chose a commission to draw up a constitution, con- 
sisting of the late Mr. Lombard, the Landdrost of 
Potchefstroom, the late Mr. Boomen, the grand- 
father of our Predikant Boomen, and myself. To 
our number was added Mr. Stuart, as secretary, to 
assist us, and we laid down the constitution: our 
names stand at the foot of it. 

And what is the principle that it contains? In 
framing Article 8 of the Grondwet, we had in mind 
how God had led the people and how God's Word 
was a guide by which we must act. Article 8 says: 
" The people demands the greatest possible social 
liberty and expects this, because it has kept its re- 
ligious faith and its engagements, and because it 
has submitted to law, order and justice and main- 
tained the same." ISTow observe whither this article 
points. It points to God's Word. The people de- 
mands the greatest possible social liberty: not a 
licentious or reckless liberty, but one based upon 
God's Word. That is the principle which this article 
contains. The people demands liberty; but it is not 

351 



APPENDIX 

only a free, but also a civilized people, which does 
not demand a reckless or licentious liberty, but one 
based upon God's Word. And to what does that 
point? What I am about to say is important, and 
I cannot do better than refer to what God tells us. 
Moses led Israel out of Egypt and was the law- 
giver and fixed the law by God's command, and 
what does the law say? That you shall not do what 
seems right in your eyes, but what God orders : that 
you shall do and that you shall perform; you shall 
do no more nor less than that. Moses selected the 
wisest and oldest men out of the people and ap- 
pointed them to be officers and judges under him 
and laid down rules which could not be departed 
from, but left it to the judges to expound and ad- 
minister the laws according to their judgment and 
conscience; but not to depart from the laws. That 
is God's commandment. The 'New Testament shows 
us the Lord and Master; but I will first say that 
Moses' subordinate officers were not the law-givers, 
and therefore had not to question whether the law 
was right, for that the Law-giver had to answer 
for. Only the Sovereign Power above Moses could 
alter what the Law-giver had laid down, even as God 
did at the rock which Moses struck with his staff; 
but the judges must deliver justice according to the 
law as they receive it, and then act as faithful 
servants, by administering the laws to the best of 
their knowledge and conscience. 

So it is also with you, right honorable judges. The 
people by an article in the constitution has appointed 
a Volksraad as the highest authority in the land, the 

352 



APPENDIX 

legislative body, which passes laws and resolutions, 
and you must administer them to the best of your 
knowledge and power. No one can hinder you in 
that, and when you administer the laws and resolu- 
tions as you receive them from the legislative body, 
then you confirm confidence in the country, for then 
all those who have received their property by decrees 
know that they are safe and that all laws and resolu- 
tions bearing thereupon will be maintained. For- 
eigners who come here and who know the laws and 
resolutions passed by the Volksraad and who are will- 
ing to submit to them are able to seciu^e their rights in 
this way, by trusting in the court, that it will not 
depart therefrom, but that the laws and resolutions 
laid down by the highest authority in the land, un- 
der which they have obtained their rights, will not 
be altered by the court, neither on the left hand nor 
on the right hand; and then you, from the highest 
to the lowest judge, confirm confidence in the coun- 
try. Each must act according to orders, laws and 
rules laid down by the legislative body that stands 
above him. Even if, now and again, owing to man's 
weakness, an article is wrongly applied and a judg- 
ment of a lower court appealed against and quashed 
by the High Court, no one can be reproached with 
this or punished for it, since he has acted to the best 
of his knowledge and conscience under his oath. 
There is no longer an appeal from the High Court ; 
and if you, honorable judges, in your own judgment, 
set aside a decree of the Volksraad, you adopt this 
right of criticism from the Devil; but if, perhaps, 
from human weakness, you pronounce a judgment 

23 353 



APPENDIX 

which is not purely in accordance with the law, but 
is pronounced to the best of your knowledge and 
conscience, then you are not indictable either before 
God or man. From you there is no longer any ap- 
peal, and therefore you are called " gods; " but God 
stands in the midst of the council of the gods and 
pronounces judgment upon good and evil. If you 
act to the best of your knowledge and conscience and 
remain within the law, then one day it shall be said 
unto you also: " Thou good and faithful servant, 
thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make 
thee ruler over many things." Then not only shall 
confidence in the country be confirmed, but also in 
you, who stand by the law, and men will have con- 
fidence also in the highest authority in the land and 
it shall not be scoffed at. Then also the sovereign 
voice of the people will be confirmed, which alone 
has the right to condemn laws. 

Let us return to the point of how you can shock 
confidence, and look back to Moses. Moses gave the 
law, yet could not depart from it, but had to pro- 
nounce judgment as the law prescribed. Only the 
supreme authority, the sovereign God alone could 
condemn the law; and not the subordinate. The 
Devil instituted the principle of criticism in Para- 
dise and criticized God's Word, which said: "Ye 
shall not eat of that tree, lest ye die." But then comes 
the Devil and criticizes that Word, saying : " Ye 
shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the 
day ye eat thereof, ye shall be as gods, knowing good 
and evil." And that interpretation is over the whole 
earth. Thus we see, under Moses, that Korah, 

S54! 



APPENDIX 

Dathan and Abiram assumed to themselves the right 
of criticism, on the principle of the Devil, and un- 
settled the land. Rebellion and discord arose against 
Moses until God destroyed Korah, Dathan and 
Abiram. God punished them heavily, because they 
had acted against truth, — against God's Word. 
The right of criticism is a principle of the Devil. 
Listen attentively to what I say and do not under- 
rate my words. We shall one day have to appear 
before God, and I do not know if I shall again have 
the opportunity of speaking to you. It may be the 
last time. Let the teachers, too, hear what I say. 
You judges shock the whole country if you take 
upon yourselves the right of criticism ; for those who 
have obtained rights under whatever law or decree 
of the Volksraad will then be shocked, for they can- 
not tell how things will go when the court has to 
decide, and it is able to disregard a law. Then con- 
fidence is destroyed in the country, and not only in 
the country, but also in the court, and the Volks- 
raad will be despised and scoiFed at. If you come 
to this, then you will be like the steward in the New 
Testament, who did not obey the orders of his Lord 
and Master, but acted according to his own pleasure ; 
and as the Devil says : " Ye shall be as gods and ye 
shall not die." But he who arrogates this to him- 
self is dismissed from his post. That Christ teaches 
us. Then confidence in the country is shocked ; and, 
if we reflect upon this, we see that God's Word 
teaches us that God can dwell in the midst of us only 
if every one remains true in his post. 

Right honorable sirs, you know that our late Chief 

355 



APPENDIX 

Justice, with some of his colleagues, adopted the 
right of criticism and became as wanton as a fish in 
the water that is free to swim about as it pleases. 
However, he jumped out of the water, that is to 
say, out of the law, on to dry land. The Volksraad 
then passed a resolution, with reference to the laws 
of the land, to the eiFect that, if a judge refuses 
to submit to them, I must dismiss him. I did my 
best, but the late Chief Justice was as slippery as 
a fish that has just jumped out of the water, so that 
I could not master him. Then his colleague, the 
Chief Justice of Cape Colony, who knew the ability 
of our late Chief Justice, came, of his own accord, 
to my assistance, and we got him back into the water, 
that is to say, the law. Then I was glad, because I 
knew the ability of the late Chief Justice and did 
not wish to lose him. After that, the late Chief 
Justice again became so wanton that he jumped so 
far out of the water that I saw no chance of getting 
him back and had to let him go, the more so as he 
then roundly declared that he did not wish to go 
back to it, because he refused to acknowledge the 
law as I understood it. But what does the late Chief 
Justice say now? That it is my fault. He says that 
I did not keep my promise; and what I am now 
saying I want taken down on paper, that all the 
world may read it. He can call it a promise, 
but I do not call it a promise; but I kept my word, 
when I told him to revise the constitution and that 
I would lay it as soon as possible before the Volks- 
raad. That was about March, in any case long be- 
fore the time when the Volksraad was to sit. But 



APPENDIX 

now I see that, in a speech delivered in Cape Colony, 
he has said, if the papers report him correctly, that 
" as soon as possible " means " to-day." The man 
seems to have lost his senses. How can I bring a 
matter before the Volksraad in March when it does 
not sit till May? As soon as the Volksraad sat, I 
brought the matter before the Raad and that body, 
without delay, appointed a committee which asked 
the late Chief Justice to help to revise the constitu- 
tion, which, however, he refused to do, notwithstand- 
ing his promise in writing. I do not take it amiss 
of him, however, for in my eyes he seems to have 
lost his senses. What does he do next? He says, 
in a manifesto, that if the people will not help him, 
he will apply to England, — that is, if I understand 
properly what he has written. He knows that he 
has taken the oath, not only as regards his ofSce, 
but that his oath is binding upon him as a burgher 
of the country; and he knows that a burgher is not 
allowed to appeal to another power : if he does, he is 
guilty. Moreover, he himself has repeatedly de- 
clared that the suzerainty no longer exists in our 
internal government, and yet he flies to that. But 
I do not take this amiss of him now, for in my eyes 
he seems to have lost his senses. That is not all. He 
also drew a comparison saying: " Suppose the 
Volksraad passed a resolution depriving liie people 
of its rights; who would then protect the people? " 
The late Chief Justice, however, forgets to say that 
what he suggests the Volksraad might do, he himself 
has already done. For, at the time of the claim- 
lottery on the Rand, he actually took away hundreds 

357 



APPENDIX 

of property-rights from the public and awarded 
them to one or two ; and there is no help for it, because 
the Supreme Court has the final decision. But, if the 
Volksraad were to take such a step, the people would 
come with petitions to have that step annulled. 
What does the late Chief Justice say further? He 
says that his dismissal is a violation of the convention, 
because he was appointed by the Interregnum; but 
he knows that this is not true. He was a judge in 
President Burgers's time, and, when the Interregnum 
came, Mr. De Wet was appointed Chief Justice. At 
least, so I am told, and I believe that it is true. When 
we took over the country again, the late Chief Jus- 
tice went away. We sent for him to Kimberley to 
take office as Chief Justice, but he was not appointed 
as such by the Interregnum. He must have for- 
gotten this, or I must have read wrong. What does 
he do next? He himself really violates the conven- 
tion by the principle which he accepts ; for he refuses 
to acknowledge any resolutions of the Volksraad that 
are contrary to the convention. By the convention 
we obtained land, but also hundreds of places were 
cut off by the convention for which deeds of sale had 
already been issued and some had even been occu- 
pied, and the convention itself lays down that the 
Volksraad must decide in the matter of the annul- 
ment of conveyances: so that that was against the 
constitution. Now, if the principle of the late Chief 
Justice had been maintained, then the convention 
would have been broken, and that we may not do, for 
then we should come into collision with England. 
That is where the maintenance of that principle 

358 



APPENDIX 

would have brought us. Then those places would 
have had to fall back into our possession and the con- 
veyances be restored, for the decrees of the Volks- 
raad concerning them were in conflict with the 
constitution, which does not recognize them. If, 
therefore, that principle was correct, there would be 
nothing for it but for us to take up the sword to go 
and fight against England. 

Gentlemen, I appreciate the late Chief Justice's 
abilities so highly that, if I thought it would do any 
good, I would have him confined in a lunatic asylum, 
for I liked him greatly, and would wait until he was 
cured to employ him again. His abilities were great, 
but he went astray when he accepted the Devil's prin- 
ciple, the right of criticism. Let me speak my mind 
to you, for the late Chief Justice has said that I dis- 
missed him illegally. Now the whole world can hear 
how the matter really happened. 

You OTHER Officers and Officials, from the 

HIGHEST TO THE LOWEST, 

On you also depends much that concerns the 
growth and prosperity of the country, on you who 
stand under orders and instructions, both verbal and 
written. If you scrupulously and zealously observe 
your duty and each of you fulfils it in his place, you 
promote the welfare of the country and contribute 
much to its progress and prosperity, and not only act 
in the interest of the country, but in your own in- 
terest so long as you keep to your instructions, verbal 
and written, each in his place. Do not undermine 
one another! 

359 



APPENDIX 

And you of the Army ! 

To you, right honorable Commandant General 
and other officers, a brief word also; from you to the 
State President and down to the officer lowest in rank, 
who all form part of the defences of our country 
against the enemy. If the State President receives 
news of a hostile invasion and does not inform you of 
it, that will be on the State President's head and the 
blood that is shed will be laid to his account and he 
will be punished for it; and if you, Commandant 
General, receive the news and do not keep watch or 
do not post watches, that will be on your head and the 
blood that is shed will be laid to your account and you 
will be punished. But if you have given your orders 
to your subordinates and they do not keep watch then 
the bloodshed will be on their heads and they will 
have to bear the responsibility and the punishment: 
so God's Word teaches us. Let each watch in his 
own department. From the Volksraad down to the 
lowest official, all form a machine of state with 
many wheels, and when each wheel works in its 
place with the others, concord reigns, and concord 
gives strength, on which God bestows His blessing. 
But when a wheel does not fit into the machine it 
must be taken out and placed on one side or shifted, 
as otherwise the whole machine might go to pieces. 
If that wheel does not fit in anywhere else, it must 
be placed on one side. If, however, it does fit in some 
other place, then, if the smallest wheel works in har- 
mony with the largest, the machine of state may be 
expected to go well and everything will spread light, 
and on such a co-operation God's blessing rests. 

360 



APPENDIX 

His Honor then turned to the clergy: 

Reveeend Sirs, Servants of God's Word, 

When I turn my eyes upon you, a favorite text 
rises to my mind: " How beautiful are the feet of 
them that publish peace." I say " publish peace; " 
I know that that is your task upon earth. The right 
of criticism was instituted by the Devil, for he said 
to Adam and Eve : " Eat of the fruit of this tree 
and ye shall not die and ye shall be like gods ; " and 
in this way the Devil has led away thousands upon 
earth to build on their own merits and thus to oppose 
God's Word and to unsettle all things, so that there 
is no foundation; and if an eye is not kept upon this 
preaching, you know what the Christians upon earth, 
who stand by God's Word, have to fight against. 
I do not speak of minor points, but of the main 
point; and he who holds fast to that has to fight 
against the spirit of the air. The Devil laid 
hold of Cain's soul, and the latter did not accept 
the punishment: he placed himself on God's level, 
made his sacrifice, and expected God to be con- 
tent with what was beautiful in Cain's eyes, and 
Cain sang hymns of praise to the Lord which came 
from nature, but which he thought were pleasing to 
God. But God rejected them, because God found 
no religion in Cain. He was outside God's words. 
But how beautiful are the feet of them that publish 
peace, like Abel. He acknowledged the judgment 
that fell in Paradise, that man was condemned — 
which the Devil brought about together with the 
right of criticism — and took a first-bom lamb — and 

361 



APPENDIX 

this refers to Christ — yes, and prayed in the spirit 
that the punishment which he had deserved might 
fall upon the Lamb, as otherwise he would suffer 
eternal death. God accepted the sacrifice and heard 
his prayer, and there we have the Father, Son and 
Holy Ghost. The severity of the law is not re- 
spected by men because of the Devil's right of criti- 
cism; and it is even so with Christ's work of redemp- 
tion, through the Holy Ghost. Then preach these 
words: "How beautiful are the feet of them that 
publish peace." Stand firm in the struggle. The 
Devil goes further and respects nothing ; for we read : 
" I will put enmity between thee and the woman, 
and between her seed and thy seed ; it shall bruise thy 
head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." So at last he 
comes to the Son of God in the wilderness — and with 
the same intention he comes to the whole earth — and 
says to Jesus: " If Thou be the Son of God, com- 
mand that these stones be made bread." But Christ 
says : " Man shall not live by bread alone, but by 
every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of 
God." Then he sets Christ on the pinnacle of the 
Temple, and the Devil says to Him: " If Thou be 
the Son of God, cast Thyself down from hence: for 
it is written, He shall give His angels charge over 
Thee, and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest 
at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone." 
But Christ answering says : " It is said. Thou shalt 
not tempt the Lord thy God." Then the Devil takes 
Jesus up into an high mountain and shows Him all 
the kingdoms of the world, saying: " If Thou wilt 
worship me, all this shall be Thine." But Christ 

362 



APPENDIX 

says, " It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy 
God, and Him only shalt thou serve." 

See there your preaching of the Gospel, you ser- 
vants of Christ, founded on God's Word, and if you 
preach thus, you will be a help to the State, for it 
rests upon God's Word, as shown in Article 8 of the 
constitution. The people says that it has liberty, and 
that is so, but based upon God's Word; and thus 
was this land designed by our forefathers, on the 
basis of God's Word, for the maintenance of law and 
order. That is a thing that does not proceed from 
men; for I myself did not understand one of the 
depths of that article, how God at that time led us. 
Reverend sirs, predikants, stand firm in the faith; 
for how beautiful are the feet of them that publish 
peace in Jesus Christ; for the Devil's doctrine of 
criticism says that man has become as a god and can 
secure his own happiness by his own hghts and his 
own reason and his own merit, and therefore that he 
shall not die. No, stand firm, and preach in accor- 
dance with God's Word, for then you are truly the 
clergy of our people; and lead it in that road and 
always keep the fear of the Lord before its eyes, 
so that the people may walk in the right paths, both 
socially and religiously, and if your work is earnest 
and true and sincere, then will you really be a sup- 
port to the state. Then there will be general har- 
mony. "Fear God and honor the King." We 
shall respect you in your divine profession, in your 
precious labors, in your heavenly work, for how 
beautiful are the feet of them that publish peace. 
We cannot, however, protect you fiu:ther than our 

363 



APPENDIX 

power allows. We shall respect you and protect you, 
yes, even help and assist you to help to build up the 
church, but also not further than God's Word com- 
mands; and know that, when the earthly judge goes 
so far that he begins to meddle with the internal gov- 
ernment of the church, he is inspired with the spirit 
of Anti-Christ, for then he usiu-ps the place of Christ, 
who is the Head of the church. If the worldly power 
does this, it adopts the Devil's right of criticism to 
get that into its claws and destroy religion. God has 
erected this Christian state and a Christian govern- 
ment, which will protect the church outside us, and 
you too, reverend sirs ; but if you go outside the body 
that said, " Feed my lambs, feed my sheep," you 
meddle with the body politic and are possessed of the 
spirit of the Pope, and your preaching is no longer 
a beautiful preaching of the Gospel. So long as 
each remains within his own sphere of activity, there 
will be a healthy co-operation, and God's spirit will 
rest upon us and the Lord will bless us. 

Now, DEAS Children, 

A brief word to you. You are the ones upon 
whom the State President keeps his eye, for I see 
our future church and state in your hands ; for when 
all the old people are gone, you will be the church 
and state, but if you depart from the truth and stray, 
you will lose your inheritance. Stand firm by God's 
Word, in which your parents have brought you up. 
Love that Word. I shall endeavor with all my 
might to assist churches and schools, to let you re- 
ceive a Christian education, so that you may both 



APPENDIX 

religiously and socially become useful members of 
church and state, and I trust that the teachers and 
ministers will also do their best. It is a great privi- 
lege that your Government has ordered a Christian 
education, and you are greatly privileged in being 
able to enjoy a Christian education, and not you 
alone, for the object is to extend it so that all may 
have the opportunity of receiving it and turning it 
to account. It is a great privilege that the Govern- 
ment and the legislative power have thus laid down 
the law as to Christian instruction. It is also a great 
privilege for you that the Government and Volks- 
raad have accepted our language as the state 
language. Keep to that, keep to the language 
in which your forefathers, whom God led out of 
the wilderness, struggled and prayed to God and 
which became ever dearer and dearer to them: the 
language in which the Bible comes to you and in 
which your forefathers read the Bible, and which 
contains the religion of your forefathers. And, 
therefore, if you become indifferent to your lan- 
guage, you also become indifferent to your fore- 
fathers and indifferent to the Bible and indifferent 
to your religion; and then you will soon stray away 
entirely and will rob posterity of your Dutch Bible 
and of your religion, which God confirmed to your 
forefathers with wonders and miracles. Stand firm 
then, so that we may not trust you in vain, and keep 
to your language, your Bible and your religion. It 
is a good thing to learn foreign languages, especially 
the language of your neighbors with whom you have 
most to do ; but let any foreign language be a second 

S65 



APPENDIX 

language to you. Pray to God that you may stand 
firm on this point and not stray, so that the Lord may 
remain among you, and posterity will honor you for 
your loyalty. 

Schoolmasters and Mistresses, 

A brief word to you also. You have, as it were, 
become the guardians of the children in the place of 
the parents who have given their children to God 
before the pulpit to be educated for the Lord, in His 
service and to His honor. You have taken them over 
to feed them, as Christ said, like lambs, to the honor 
of God. You know that the New Testament says 
that women brought their children to Jesus. They 
were healthy and not sick children. The unbelievers 
only take them to the doctor; but none of them will 
send their healthy children to the doctor. Here, how- 
ever, you see the women coming with healthy children 
to Jesus, and the disciples rebuked them, but Jesus 
said: " Suffer little children to come unto Me, and 
forbid them not, for of such is the Kingdom of 
Heaven." The mothers brought their children to re- 
ceive the heavenly blessing on the inward vocation 
and to be healed inwardly. But if you, schoolmasters 
and mistresses, do not know the faith, how then will 
you bring the children to Christ through the faith? 
I trust, however, that you do know it. Therefore, 
never forget to bring the children to the Lord 
through the faith, and take care that religion is not 
left in the background and only educational subjects 
taught, for then you are attacking religion and it 
will be forgotten. For, when man proceeds only ac- 

366 



APPENDIX 

cording to his nature and his knowledge, he hegins 
to believe what the Devil has said, that men shall be 
as gods ; and then it can be said of such a man: " The 
greater the mind, the greater the beast." Then he 
rushes from place to place. Therefore let religion 
not be neglected, for that is the foundation of church 
and state. Stand firm by the Bible and teach the 
children who are entrusted to you for that purpose, 
and it shall be said to you too : " Thou good and 
faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few 
things, I will make thee ruler over many things: 
enter thou into the joy of thy Lord and sit at My 
right hand." 
I have spoken. 

Certified as a true extract from the original min- 
utes of the Honorable First Volksraad of the 12th 
of May 1898. 

(Signed) W. J. Fockens, 

Secretary to the First Volksraad. 

I certify that the above is a true and faithful copy. 
H. C. DE Bruijn Prince. 



S67 



APPENDIX B 

Speech of State President Kruger in the First 

VOLKSRAAD ON MONDAY, 1 MaY 1899 

To the Bight Hon. Mr. President of the First 
Volksraad and to the honorable members of the 
First and Second Volksraad 

Gentlemen, 

It is a great pleasure to me once more cordially to 
welcome you in this your house of assembly and to 
give my hearty thanks to God, who rules the Uni- 
verse and who has spared and saved you all, so that 
you may again, with His help, devote all your ener- 
gies to the interests of our dear country and people. 

1. In those places where different members of 
your honorable assembly retired last year in rotation, 
I have ordered new elections for members of the 
First and Second Volksraad. The result of those 
elections will be laid before you. 

2. As the vacancy arising through the election 
of Mr. A. D. W. Wolmarans to be a member of the 
Executive Raad must be filled as soon as possible, I 
have issued a writ for the election of a new member 
for the village and district of Pretoria. The result 
of that election will be communicated to you. 

3. The term of office of Mr. S. W. Burger, 
member of the Executive Baad, will expire by rota- 



APPENDIX 

tion on the 6th of this month; I therefore ask you to 
provide for the vacancy before that time, and I take 
leave to remind you that the present occupant is re- 
eligible. 

4. I hope in this session to call your attention as 
early as possible to certain proposals which I wish to 
make to your honorable assembly with regard to the 
franchise, the bewaarplaatsen and the dynamite 
question. 

5. It is a great pleasure to me to be able again to 
state that the Republic continues in friendly relations 
with foreign powers. The correspondence between 
our Government and the British Government, aris- 
ing from the difference of opinion regarding the in- 
ternational relations of the Republic towards Great 
Britain and Ireland, is not yet finished; I trust, 
however, that this matter will soon be brought to a 
satisfactory conclusion. It is always my endeavor to 
do all in my power to confirm those good relations. 

6. The Raad of Delegates has this year held its 
annual sitting at Bloemfontein. The report, with 
the suggestions of that body, shall be laid before 
you. Those suggestions, in which the Government 
joins, deserve your earnest attention. 

7. In accordance with the resolutions of your hon- 
orable assembly touching the suggestions of the 
Raad of Delegates for 1898, the Governments of the 
Republics appointed commissions to try to make the 
constitutions of the two states, in so far as possible, 
similar. Those commissions met in the month of 
February last at Pretoria. The report of their de- 
liberations shall be laid before you. A commission 

24 369 



APPENDIX 

consisting of the Chief Justices of the two Repub- 
lics has undertaken the duty of making further sug- 
gestions for the assimilation of laws in accordance 
with the resolutions passed in your session of 1898. 
This important work, however, requires long con- 
sideration and mature deliberation, and this commis- 
sion has not yet quite finished a work which, when 
it has once been given force of law by the represen- 
tatives of the people of both states, will certainly 
promote the welfare and the prosperity of the sister 
republics. 

8. Negotiations have been entered into with the 
Orange Free State touching the payment of regis- 
tration fees for goods which, by treaty, are imported 
free of duty into the South African Republic, this 
in accordance with the resolution of your honorable 
assembly, numbered 1,365, of the 4th of October 
1898. These negotiations have led to a provisional 
agreement between the Governments of the two 
states which shall be laid before you for your 
approval. 

9. In view of the threatening danger that the ter- 
rible sickness known as the bubonic plague might 
visit South Africa, at the suggestion of our Govern- 
ment a conference was held, at the commencement 
of the year, at Pretoria, consisting of representatives 
of the Orange Free State, Mozambique, Natal and 
Cape Colony, in order to frame measures to prevent 
the entrance and spread of the Asiatic pestilence in 
South Africa. The report of the labors of the con- 
ference, which is sure to be read by you with interest, 
will be laid before you during this session for your 

370 



APPENDIX 

approval of the suggestions and proposals therein 
contained. 

10. An invitation has been received from the Im- 
perial German Government to dispatch a represen- 
tative of the Republic to attend the International 
Veterinary Congress which will be held at Baden- 
Baden in the month of August of this year. Taking 
into consideration that this Congress may be of great 
importance to the Republic, the Government has 
thought fit to depute the Governmental Veterinary 
Surgeon as its representative, which will, I trust, 
meet with your approval. He will, at the same time, 
make use of this opportunity to study the bubonic 
plague and the various remedies. 

11. I am able to inform you that earnest endeavors 
are being made and that negotiations have already 
been entered into for the appointment of an able 
financial minister for the South African Republic. 

12. I am very much pleased to be able to inform 
you that great progress has been made this year in 
trade, especially in the first quarter, as appears from 
the increased revenue of the state. 

13. I call your attention to the resolution of your 
honorable assembly, numbered 325 and passed on the 
15th of March 1899, in the matter of the grant of a 
bonus to the retired member of the Executive Raad, 
Mr. J. M. A. Wolmarans. I must express my sin- 
cere regret that the honorable gentleman has been 
compelled by the state of his health to hand in 
his resignation, since he has always been a most 
useful member of the Executive Raad, thanks 
to his clear insight into affairs, his energy and his 

371 



APPENDIX 

great love for his country, in which he always showed 
himself to have at heart the true interests of land 
and people ; and I cannot omit to express to him my 
thanks for all that he has done, hoping that your as- 
sembly will come to a favorable decision on the re- 
quest already made by me, as contained in the Gov- 
ernment Message of the 10th of March 1899. 

14. The Executive Raad has found it necessary 
to dispatch a commando against the rebellious na- 
tives of the tribe of Ramapulaan, under their leader 
M'Pesu, in the Zoutpansberg district. I cannot iind 
sufficient praise for the courage, the skill and the 
sagacious prudence of our Conmiandant General 
and officers, by which they have brought this war to 
a satisfactory conclusion, and for the excellent and 
gallant behavior of our burghers, and I congratulate 
all of us on the rapid and thorough manner in which 
this revolt has been suppressed. We mourn the fact 
that this commando has claimed some valuable vic- 
tims and our sympathy is with the survivors. The 
Government has decided to found a village, to be 
called Louis Trichardt, on the spot where the laagers 
stood, and I am convinced that the action of the Gov- 
ernment meets with your approval. 

15. Seeing that the Netherlands South African 
Railway Company has resolved to repay the sum of 
£2,000,000 which it had borrowed from the Govern- 
ment, the necessity for the conclusion of a loan on 
the part of the Government disappears for the 
present. , 

16. I must express, in my own name and that of 
the Executive Raad, our great satisfaction with the 

372 



APPENDIX 

labors and transactions of our Envoy Extraordinary, 
Dr. W. J. Leyds, who reported to us on the occasion 
of his visit here. 

17. It appears from various sources of informa- 
tion that the mining industry has made the greatest 
progress during the past year. The value of the 
gold extracted was <£l 6,240,630, being an increase 
of £4,886,905 over 1897. The total value of the 
gold extracted in our country to the end of 1898 
amounts to £70,228,603. The results of 1898 place 
the South African Republic considerably above any 
other gold-producing country, and represent 28 per 
cent, of the estimated produce of the whole world. 

18. The Government has resolved to give effect 
to the former resolutions passed in connection with 
the coolie question, with the result that, from the 1st 
of July, 1899, coolies will be allowed to reside only 
in those streets, quarters and locations of the differ- 
ent towns and villages which have been set apart for 
their use. 

19. There are many plans for public works, prin- 
cipally bridges and buildings, which could not be 
carried into execution or even discussed, because the 
Executive Raad was overwhelmed with so much other 
business and also because financial arrangements 
must first be made with this object. 

20. In obedience to the order of your honorable 
assemblies, the Government has published the Draft 
Constitution and the Criminal Procedure Law in the 
Staatscoura7it for the approval of the people. Your 
earnest attention is invited to those important laws. 

21. In obedience to your order, the Govermnent 



APPENDIX 

will again lay a pensions law before your honorable 
assembly for discussion. I hope that this law will 
enjoy your earnest consideration. 

22. It has been my privilege to visit certain dis- 
tricts and villages, and to hold meetings at the fol- 
lowing places: Heidelberg, Rustenburg and Johan- 
nesburg. I hope, in the course of this session, to call 
your attention to the demands and wishes of the bur- 
ghers, in so far as these have been brought to my 
notice. 

23. The Government finds, from the various re- 
ports, that about 746,500 head of cattle have perished 
from the pest. To my great gratitude, however, I 
am able to inform you that this so dreaded disease 
may now be regarded as suppressed. In January 
last, a few cases still occurred, but only at Lyden- 
burg, Krugersdorp and Piet Retief ; and, thanks to 
the immediate fulfilment of the regulations contained 
in the proclamation and to the goodness of Pro\d- 
dence, the disease was confined within those limits 
and spread no further. 

24. The Government has given orders for the sur- 
vey of places for irrigation purposes, and the report 
on the subject shall be laid before you. 

25. A list of newly-appointed, resigned, suspended 
and discharged functionaries shall be submitted for 
your approval. 

26. The different reports of the heads of depart- 
ments shall be laid before you. 

27. Different bills and modifications of the laws 
shall be submitted for your approval. 

28. The Government has given effect, in so far 

374 



APPENDIX 

as possible, to the instructions of your High Assem- 
bly, as will appear from the papers and reports that 
will be laid before you. 

29. The Government proposes, in the course of 
this session, to bring before your notice different 
matters of greater or lesser importance for your con- 
sideration and decision. 

And with this, gentlemen, I once more confidently 
place the interests of our dear country and people in 
your hands. God grant you the necessary strength 
and wisdom to settle the matters which you will take 
in hand, under His high blessing, for the welfare 
and prosperity of land and people. 

(Signed) S. J. P. Kruger, 

State President. 

I certify that the above is a true and faithful copy. 
H. C. DE Bruijn Prince. 



375 



APPENDIX C 

Two Speeches of President Kruger at the 
Decisive Sitting of the First and Second 
volksraad of 2 october 1899 



Speech delivered at the Commencement of the 
Sitting 

Honorable Sirs, 

To tell you what is in my mind : you know how the 
Lord transplanted this people to this country and 
led it here amid miracles; so that we should have to 
say, " Lord, I no longer believe in Thee," if things 
came to such a pass with us that now, when thousands 
of enemies are assailing us, we voluntarily surren- 
dered the land which He gave us and not we our- 
selves. Let us trust in God and together oiFer up our 
prayers to the Lord. He is waiting for our entreaties 
and He will be with us. The decision rests with Him, 
and He will decide, not on lies, but on the ground 
of truth. 

You are familiar with the course of events and 
know how the Volksraad and the people have yielded 
in everything that was demanded. First, it was a 
question of the franchise. Three times we yielded 
in this matter and I repeat, so that it may appear 

S76 



APPENDIX 

upon the minutes, that it is a lie to say that we were 
not wiUing to treat those who came from abroad as 
our equals. 

When the Convention of 1881 was concluded, 
there were only a few English here; and what was it 
that they wanted? They were quite willing to be 
treated on an equal footing with our burghers, but 
registered themselves as British subjects; they pre- 
ferred to remain foreigners rather than become sub- 
jects of this state. 

You know, moreover, that, under the Convention 
of 1884, at the time of the Blue Mountains com- 
mando, they refused to take the field with our bur- 
ghers, although by so doing they would have at once 
received the franchise. I brought the matter three 
times before the Raad and begged it to pass a reso- 
lution that they must defend the country; and the 
Volksraad confirmed that all who took part in the 
war should obtain the franchise. Then Loch came 
here and complained that the EngHsh were not 
treated as the most favored nation. I thereupon 
again issued another proclamation, because I thought 
that there might really be people to be found 
who wished to stand on an equal footing with our 
burghers; I did this, although the Convention (of 
1884) expressly prescribes that they shall possess not 
equal political, but equal commercial rights. Now 
think — we are standing before the Lord and let each 
of us send his prayer on high to the Lord — where can 
they say that, with regard to trade, they were less 
favored than our own burghers? Nowhere. They 
were, in this respect, even more favorably placed than 

S77 



APPENDIX 

our burghers. They could take gold and anything 
they liked out of the country and they could even 
obtain political rights, but they would not have them. 
The High Commissioner demanded that we should 
extend the franchise and we had already done more ; 
we even tried, afterwards, to treat them, the Uit- 
landers, on an equal footing with our burghers, but 
they declined. 

In this respect, therefore, there is no injustice on 
our side. We can appear frankly before our Lord. 
He will decide and He decides not by virtue of lies, 
but according to justice and truth. Let us therefore 
send up our prayers to Him on high, that He may 
guide us, and then, if thousands come, the Lord will 
guide us in right and justice until, perhaps, we shall 
be freed once and for all from all these cares. I 
place myself wholly in His hands. 

I will accuse no one of being a false prophet ; but 
read Psalm 108, verse 7, which came to my mind 
while I was struggling in prayer. You must not 
read it because I say so, but because it is God's Word. 
It was no dream that stood before my spirit, for false 
dreams mislead us and I do not trouble about them: 
I take my stand on God's Word alone. Now read 
that psalm attentively and associate your prayers 
with that: then will the Lord guide us; and, 
when He is with us, who shall be against us? 
Therefore I say to you, go among your burghers 
and exhort them continually to pray in this 
struggle. 

We so often forget what the Lord has done. I 
will not speak again of the War of Independence, 

378 



APPENDIX 

in which the Lord so visibly and wonderfully aided 
us. But was it otherwise in the Jameson Raid? 
They aimed thousands of shells and balls at us, while 
we shot onl}'- with rifles; and how wonderfully was 
the course of the bullets ordered! Three of us fell, 
while the enemy had hundreds killed and wounded. 
And who ordered the flight of the bullets? The 
Lord. He spared us then, to prove to us that He 
rules all things. The Lord will also protect you now, 
even if thousands of bullets fly around you. That is 
my faith and also my constant prayer for myself, for 
the burghers and for all who fight with us. I will 
say once more that the Lord will guide us: He wiU 
decide and show to us that He rules and none other. 

II 

The Second Speech delivered at the Sitting of 
2 October 1899 

The State President spoke a second time, after 
the Presidents of the First and Second Volksraad 
had supported him in enthusiastic speeches : 

It gives me great confidence to see that the Raad 
is with me. I know that, Hke myself, it believes 
in God's Word. If you search that Word, you will 
find that God, when He punishes and chastises His 
people, does not do so in such a way that He delivers 
that people wholly into the hands of its enemies. We 
too, when we chastise our children, do not allow others 
to beat them. When the people, that is, the people 
of Israel, fell away from God and committed idola- 

S79 



APPENDIX 

try, it was punished and almost fell into slavery. 
But you see in the Old Testament how, when thou- 
sands of enemies then come to annihilate God's 
people, the people trusts to God, its Creator and 
Redeemer. 

Gentlemen, you have heard how they mock at us 
for appealing to the Lord. That is a blasphemy 
against God, and we trust therefore that the Lord 
will not let it go unpunished. The Lord chastises 
us, but He will not suffer Himself to be blas- 
phemed. 

One brief word more. Moses was a man of God, 
and the Lord spoke with him ; but, at a time of great 
stress and combat, his friends had to stay up his 
hands, for he was but a weak mortal. Aaron had to 
support him in the faith. So let us too remember 
our generals and fighting-generals in our prayers, 
and unceasingly offer our prayers to God. Let us 
support them in their faith and let us not forget to 
strengthen with our prayers the men who have to 
conduct the Government. 



S80 



APPENDIX D 

Opening Speech of President Steyn at the 
Annuae Session of the Volksraad of the 
Orange Free State at Kroonstad, 2 April 
1900 

Mr. President and Gentlemen, 

Although the enemy is in possession of Bloemfon- 
tein and I have been obhged temporarily to remove 
the seat of government to Kroonstad, I nevertheless 
open your usual annual session full of firm con- 
fidence in the future, and I heartily bid you welcome. 

1. In spite of your efforts and the efforts of both 
Governments to preserve peace, a war has been 
forced upon the South African Repubhc by the 
British Government. And the Orange Free State 
has been true to her obhgations, and, in accordance 
with your resolution, ranged herself on the side of the 
Sister Republic when, on the 13th of October, war 
broke out between the South African Republic and 
the British Government. 

2. The Repubhcs picked up the gauntlet with no 
other object than that of defending their indepen- 
dence, which cost our forefathers so much blood and 
which is so dear to us, to the uttermost. Thanks to 
the Almighty, our arms were blessed in a manner 
which not only struck the world with amazement, 
but far exceeded our own expectations. Although 

S81 



APPENDIX 

the capture of General Cronje and his gallant 
burghers and the occupation of Bloemfontein were 
heavy blows to us, I am nevertheless glad to be able 
to say that our burghers are still full of courage and 
determined to continue to fight for the preservation 
of our dearly-purchased independence, and, if neces- 
sary, like so many of our dear ones, to die as brave 
and never-to-be-forgotten heroes. With the deepest 
regret I have to inform you of the decease of the 
Vice-president and Commandant General of our 
Sister Republic, Petrus Jacobus Joubert, a man in 
whom not only the Sister Republic, but all South 
Africa has lost a faithful friend, a true patriot and an 
upright Christian, who devoted his best years to the 
service of his nation. May his life serve as an ex- 
ample to all of us and his death stimulate us, under 
God's blessing, to continue the struggle which he had 
hitherto led with such ability in the Sister Republic 
and to bring it to a happy peace ! 

3. The enemy, not content with his greatly su- 
perior force, has sought to obtain still further ad- 
vantages by a constant abuse of the Red Cross and 
the white flag, against which abuse I have been 
obliged to make a protest to the neutral Powers. Ay, 
the mighty British Empire has not disdained, in this 
conflict with two small Republics, to make use of 
crafty proclamations in order to divide our little 
people. I have pointed, in a counter-proclamation 
of my own, to the craftiness and danger of this com- 
munication, and am glad to be able to say that, so far 
as I know, comparatively few have been so cowardly 
and faint-hearted as to surrender voluntarily. 

382 



APPENDIX 

4. In order to prevent further bloodshed and to 
assure the civilized world once more that it is not our 
intention to annex the neighboring colonies, but that 
we are pursuing an entirely different object, namely 
the defence of our liberty and our rights. His Honor 
the State President of the South African RepubHc 
and I have written a letter to His Excellency the 
Prime Minister of Great Britain with a view to the 
restoration of peace. But, instead of aiding us in 
our endeavors, he has sent us a reply which will be 
laid before you and which clearly shows that this war 
had no other object from the commencement than the 
destruction of the two Republics. 

5. Even as I, and the Executive Raad with me, 
had already attempted everything in order to pre- 
serve peace, so we lose sight of nothing to-day that 
could serve to restore peace. The Government of 
the South African Republic and our own Govern- 
ment have therefore decided to send a commission 
consisting of Messrs. A. Fischer, member of the Ex- 
ecutive Raad, C. H. Wessels, President of the Volks- 
raad, and A. D. Wolmarans, member of the Ex- 
ecutive Raad of the South African RepubHc, to 
Europe and America to ask the civilized Powers for 
their intervention for the prevention of further 
bloodshed. That their labors may be blessed with 
success is and must be the object of all our prayers. 

6. By virtue of the plenary powers that have been 
given me, I have concluded a loan with the South 
African Repubhc. 

7. It will be impossible for us to proceed to the 
usual debates. I would therefore propose to you 

383 



APPENDIX 

to adjourn them to a later date and to discuss only 
those questions and decrees that shall be laid before 
you. 

I conclude with the sincere prayer that, in the 
name of the Thrice Holy God, we may all be granted 
strength to keep up the sacred struggle for freedom 
and justice upon which we entered in all seriousness 
and to continue it energetically to the end. For God 
forbid that we should lightly surrender the indepen- 
dence which we bought with our blood. I have done. 



381 



APPENDIX E 

Opening Speech of President Kruger at the 
Ordinary Annual Session of the First and 
Second Volksraad of the South African 
Republic at the Joint Sitting of 7 May 
1900 

Gentlemen, 

I once more have great pleasure in cordially wel- 
coming you in this house of assembly and in ventur- 
ing to give thanks to God, who rules the Universe 
and who has protected and preserved you, so that 
you can once more, with His help, devote all your 
strength to the interests of our dear country and 
people. 

1. Some members of your Raad have iaformed me 
that, in consequence of the war, which compels their 
presence with the commandos, they were unable to 
obey the summons to attend this meeting. 

2. The war in which our country is engaged with 
England has, in addition to the many valuable vic- 
tims which it has already exacted from among the 
bm-ghers of both States, also demanded its victims 
from the legislative and executive bodies, in conse- 
quence of which we have to lament the deaths of our 
meritorious fellow-members J. H. Barnard, C. J. 
Tosen, J. H. Kock, and our beloved Vice-president 
and Conmiandant General P. J. Joubert. One of 

25 385 



APPENDIX 

them died a glorious death at Derdepoort in the de- 
fence of his fatherland against wild Kaffir hordes 
commanded by British officers; the other from the 
womids which he received at the Battle of Elands- 
laagte when leading our burghers; while both Mr. 
Tosen and the Vice-president and Commandant 
General were taken from us by disease, the result of 
privations. A word of deep-felt esteem for those 
dead brothers, who were snatched from us in the 
midst of their prosperous career, is not, I think, out 
of place at this time. Posterity will rate at its right 
value the work of our late Commandant General, 
whose attitude inspired even the enemy with respect 
and whose humane and glorious conduct assured our 
state a name of standing among the civilized nations. 

3. New elections for the vacant seats in the Volks- 
raad could not be held because of the extraordinary 
circumstances. 

4. I have nominated Mr. S. W. Burger as Vice- 
president of the South African Republic: this nom- 
ination is provisional until the First Volksraad has 
found time to settle the matter. 

5. As Commandant General I have appointed 
Louis Botha, also provisionally, until an election can 
be held. It was the deceased Commandant Gen- 
eral's wish that Mr. Botha should succeed him in this 
important post. I am convinced that this provisional 
appointment has also met with the approval of the 
nation. 

6. I am deeply touched by the proof of loyalty on 
the part of the people of our sister Republic, who 
has shown by this act that she was determined to 

386 



APPENDIX 

fulfil the obligations which she had made by treaty 
with the people of the South African Republic. In 
such a glorious fashion have the old ties been con- 
firmed and strengthened which already existed be- 
tween the peoples inhabiting either bank of the Vaal 
River. The sister Republic clearly saw that united 
action was necessary; for an attack on the indepen- 
dence of the South African Republic also implies 
a threat against the independent existence of the Or- 
ange Free State. The energy and the unbounded 
faith in the future of the Afrikander Nation which 
our sister Republic displayed in her attitude have set 
the people and the Government of the South African 
Republic a magnificent example, have strengthened 
us in the struggle for our existence which has been 
forced upon us by the war with Great Britain and 
are of even greater moral value for the outer world 
and for all who follow the struggle of a small people 
for its existence. The least, therefore, in my opin- 
ion, that our duty towards our loyal brothers and 
fellow-Afrikanders in the Orange Free State de- 
mands of us is that I should, at this place of your 
assembly, express, as your interpreter, our sincere 
and deep-felt sense of gratitude. God bless them 
for their devotion to the cause of freedom ! 

7. It is a satisfaction to me to be again able to 
inform you that, with the exception of the Kingdom 
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Repubhc continues 
in friendly relations with foreign Powers. 

8. While visiting the various laagers, I was also 
at Bloemfontein, where I agreed with His Honor 
the State President of the Orange Free State to send 

387 



APPENDIX 

a joint dispatch to the British Government, in which, 
after referring to the fact that we had not sought war 
and desired no increase of territory, we proposed to 
open friendly negotiations on the basis that both Re- 
pubHcs should be recognized as sovereign interna- 
tional states and receive the assurance that those of 
Her Majesty's subjects who had assisted us in this 
war should suffer no damage in person or property. 
From the reply of the British Government, which 
shall be laid before you, you will see that that Gov- 
ernment was always and is still determined to destroy 
the independent existence of the two Republics. 

9. Even if our legislation in past years and our 
negotiations with the British Government had not 
shown that we were ready to do everything to pre- 
serve peace, we are, now that war has broken out in 
spite of our efforts to prevent it, prepared to do 
everything and to leave nothing untried to restore 
peace. With this object, I have agreed with His 
Honor the State President of the Orange Free State 
to send Mr. A. Fischer, the respected member of the 
Executive Raad of the Orange Free State, for both 
Republics, Mr. C. H. Wessels, President of the 
Volksraad of the Free State, for his State, and Mr. 
A. D. W. Wolmarans, member of the Executive 
Raad, for our Republic, to Europe and America 
with the commission, in the name of the people and 
the Governments of the South African Repubhc and 
the Orange Free State, to petition for the restora- 
tion of peace on the basis of the independence of the 
two Repubhcs. 

10. The presence in our fighting lines of attaches 

S88 



APPENDIX 

who have been deputed by different states to follow 
the progress of the war, points to the great interest 
which the Governments of those states take in the 
methods of warfare of om:* RepubHcs. At the same 
time I rejoice to find that the sympathy of well-nigh 
the whole world is on our side in this struggle for 
right and Hberty and that different countries have 
sent detachments of the Red Cross as ambulances 
to the battle-fields to allay the pain and suffering of 
our wounded, while at the same time funds are being 
collected, not only in Europe, but also in America 
and Asia, to help the widows and orphans of the 
slain. I am, therefore, but carrying out your wishes 
when I here express our gratitude for those self- 
sacrificing actions of noble humanity. 

11. I have been compelled to make a protest to 
the different neutral Powers against various actions 
which are in conflict with international law and with 
warfare as practised between civihzed nations, as, 
for instance, against the abuse of the Red Cross and 
the white flag, the ill-treatment of the wounded on 
the battle-field and of prisoners of war, and the em- 
ployment of natives to fight against the Republics. 

12. In spite of the difficult circumstances in which 
the war has placed the country, I rejoice to find that 
the treasury has been able to meet the great expenses 
of the war and that the mines are developing pro- 
gressively. 

13. I have made use of your authorization and 
concluded a loan with the Orange Free State. 

14. By virtue of your authorization by Resolution 
1,416 of the 28th of September 1899, the Govern- 

389 



APPENDIX 

ment has issued and enforced decrees as circum- 
stances demanded. The Government trusts that its 
action, in so far as it relies upon those plenary pow- 
ers, has received your approval, and asks for instruc- 
tions that it may continue in the same way. 

15. It will not be possible to dispatch the ordi- 
nary business of our annual session, and I therefore 
suggest to you that you should discuss only those 
matters which will be laid before you and adjourn 
all others to a later date. 

And with this, gentlemen, I conclude. May the 
Ruler of Nations vouchsafe to gird us with strength 
to bring to a desired end this unequal and violent 
strife, upon which we have entered in His name and 
for our sacred right. May the burghers and officers, 
inspired from on high with strength and with a sense 
of duty both towards those brave men who have given 
their lives for the preservation of the fatherland and 
towards the coming generation that expects to re- 
ceive a free fatherland at their hands, feel impelled 
to continue the war and to remain steadfast. And 
thus may the South African race, whose future was 
always hopeful, now at last develop into a mighty 
tree and prove by its actions that we are worthy of 
taking our place in the ranks of the nations. God 
in His Heaven help us to attain that end! I have 
done. 



390 



APPENDIX F 

Speech delivered on the 7th of May by Presi- 
dent Kruger in explanation of his Open- 
ing Speech at the Ordinary Session of 1900 

Right Honorable the Presidents and Honor- 
able Members of the two Volksraads^ 

Although it is not my custom, allow me to add a 
few words to my speech : the situation of the country 
is such that I make this public request to be permitted 
to give an explanation of my address. 

You know how the franchise was insisted upon 
before the war began. You know that the Govern- 
ment yielded, after obtaining the consent of the 
Raad, although this body saw objections to such a 
course, imtil even the burghers made representations, 
as though we were about to surrender ahnost aU our 
rights. The Government had in view the prevention 
of bloodshed. The Raad then agreed to the seven 
years' franchise and also that all persons who had 
been here for more than seven years could acquire the 
franchise immediately. There were then nearly 
30,000 who were able to acquire the franchise at once, 
and so much had been yielded that, if all of these had 
obtained the franchise, they could have outvoted the 
old burghers. It was only to prevent bloodshed that 
we yielded so much as this. Nevertheless they were 

391 



APPENDIX 

not contented, and declared that they wanted to have 
the franchise after five years. 

Our burghers were against this, and there were 
also members of the Raad who would not grant it; 
but, notwithstanding, the Government made a pro- 
posal, because they had perceived that it was not a 
question of the franchise, but that this was a pre- 
text full of Pharisaical hypocrisy; for docimients had 
been found showing that, as early as 1896, it had 
been decided that the two independent Repubhcs 
must cease to exist. I can express myself in no other 
terms than by calhng it a " devihsh fraud." They 
talked of peace, while the decision had already been 
taken to destroy us. Even, therefore, if we had 
yielded more, if we had even said that the franchise 
could be acquired after one year's residence, that 
would not have been accepted. For it had appeared 
from docimients that this people should no longer 
be a free people. As I stated in my speech, the Gov- 
ernment, in order to avoid bloodshed, made a far- 
reaching proposal to Chamberlain and Salisbury; and 
what was the answer? You have read that docu- 
ment, and, although I cannot repeat the text of the 
document word for word, it amounts to this, that they 
are angry at ever having recognized us as an inde- 
pendent nation, and that, in spite of all the conven- 
tions that had been made, they will never acknow- 
ledge that this nation is independent. 

Honorable sirs, I must speak out and say what 
I have in my mind. Psalm 83 speaks of the attacks 
of the Evil One on Christ's Kingdom, which must 
no longer exist. And now the same words come from 

392 



APPENDIX 

Salisbury, for he too says, " This people must not 
exist," and God says, " This people shall exist." 
Who will win? Surely, the Lordi You now see the 
artifices which already at that time were being em- 
ployed ; also how our people was willing to surrender 
its rights, and that the Executive Raad went so far 
in yielding that we almost lost oiu* country. It was 
not, however, their intention to obtain those rights: 
they wanted our country, which was no longer to be 
independent. All the rest would not have satisfied 
them. 

Let us take note of this and observe the artful 
cunning which this matter impHes. They wrote to 
the Orange Free State that they had nothing against 
that State, but only against this Republic. They 
thus hoped to separate the two Repubhcs, whereas 
it has appeared from the docmnents that neither of 
the two was to continue to exist. See the deceit con- 
tained in this. For the documents show that, as early 
as 1896, after the Jameson Raid, this was decided 
upon; and yet they persisted in declaring that, if the 
Orange Free State would lay down her arms, that 
country would continue to exist. The Orange Free 
State then resolved not to lay down her arms, and 
together we began. 

We were 40,000 men; but we had to guard against 
Kafiirs on every side, and the commandant of Maf e- 
king had even written to us that certain Kaffir cap- 
tains would assist him, and we know that, altogether, 
those numbered 30,000 fighting Kaffirs. That 
number of KaflSrs alone was almost as great as the 
number of our combatants, while in addition there ar- 

S93 



APPENDIX 

rived over 200,000 English troops. And that was 
what we had to fight against. 

Honorable sirs, mark the dispositions of God. Is 
it not wonderful that 40,000 men should have to 
fight against hundreds of thousands and, in addition, 
against a nation of blacks, and that we should still 
be alive? Acknowledge God's hand in this. For 
it is remarkable that, where we come in touch with 
the enemy, we stand almost in proportion of ten to 
a hundred, and yet the Lord has hitherto spared your 
lives. 

I will not take it upon myself to prophesy, but I 
will point out to you the guidance contained in God's 
Word. That is extraordinary. This war is a sign 
of the times. It amounts to this, that the Beast re- 
ceives the power to persecute the Church and will 
succeed until the Lord says, " Hitherto, but no fur- 
ther." And why? Because the Church must be tried 
and purified, for there is much evil among us. That 
is why this war is an extraordinary one and a sign 
of the times. 

And every one must be convinced that God's Word 
is evident in this. They say that the people must 
not exist, but God says, "It shall exist, but must 
be purified." It lies so clear and open in my mind 
that the day of Grace is not far oif , that the Lord 
will show that He is the Ruler and that nothing shall 
happen without His consent. When He permits 
that punishment descend upon us, we must submit 
and humble ourselves, confess our sins and return 
unto the Lord. Then, when the whole nation stands 
in humility, seeing that it can do nothing, but only 

394 



APPENDIX 

the Lord, then assuredly we shall at once obtain 
peace. But this humility does not yet lie deep 
enough in our hearts, and we must do our duty ear- 
nestly, as Peter says in I Peter v. verses 7 and 8: 
" Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth 
for you " ; but in verse 8, however, stands : " Be sober, 
be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a 
roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may 
devour." This is the point respecting which we must 
watch and, if we fall into unbelief, we shall bring 
ourselves into perdition. 

I ask you, brothers, is that a right way of acting, 
as was done, that Kaffirs should be called up by let- 
ter, and that these, as at Derdepoort, should murder 
even women and children? The English declared 
that no Kaffirs were employed against us, but it is a 
fact that Montioa, with his Kaffirs, is in Maf eking 
and is being employed to fight against us. More 
than half of the people in Maf eking consist of Kaf- 
firs, who fight against us. 

Honorable sirs, you must not think that all who 
fight against us belong to the Beast; there are cer- 
tainly htmdreds of the children of God among them, 
who, however, are forced to act as they do from fear 
of the Beast; but God knows all hearts. We did not 
seek that the blood that lies on the ground should be 
shed, for we had surrendered all our rights ; but when 
they wished to murder us, we could yield no more. 

How did it go with Ahab? The mighty enemy 
came before the walls of the city, and the people had 
lost courage. Then came the prophet of God and 
said, " Fear not." Then God arose, and in that God 

395 



APPENDIX 

we must place our trust, for He is still the same 
God. Let us, therefore, not live as though there 
were no God. He rules. In the beginning was the 
Word, and the Word was God, and the Word was 
made flesh and dwelt among us. Take note of his- 
tory, which must serve us as an example. It is still 
the same God who led Israel from the wilderness 
and hardened Pharaoh's heart to the end, imtil at last 
all the first-born of the Egyptians died, whereupon 
Pharaoh allowed the Israelites to depart. It is still 
the same God who stills the winds and storms upon 
the sea, and his arm is not shortened. 

Some ask: But does that point only to the Church 
in the two Repubhcs? No. See the three youths in 
the fiery furnace. Did these rejoice alone? No, but 
God's people over the whole earth. Was it only for 
Daniel, what happened in the lions' den? No, but 
for all Christians over the whole earth. Thus the 
Lord often employs a small band, to whom He dis- 
plays His miracles as an example for the whole 
Christian world. 

Look at the blood that has been shed here on earth. 
What is the cause of it? We have wanted peace 
and our Hberty, ever since 1836, and the Lord 
has given them to us, and shall the Lord ever lay His 
hand to a thing to withdraw it again? No, but let us 
humble ourselves before the Lord. There is no doubt 
that eventually the Lord will lead us to victory. The 
day of grace is not far off for His people. Let 
us not doubt, but remain true to God's word and fight 
in His name. When the water shall rise to oiu' lips 
and we humble ourselves earnestly before the Lord, 

S96 



APPENDIX 

then shall the day of Grace have come. Let each then 
acknowledge that it is the Lord's hand that sets us 
free and none other, so that man may not glorify 
himself. The Lord only employs man to carry out 
His will. 

I have laid my speech before you, and I hope that 
the Volksraad will not sit longer upon it than to- 
morrow at latest, as many of the members are bur- 
ghers in the field or officers. This is not the time 
to discuss ordinary business, and let only those mat- 
ters be discussed which I submit to you. Then I have 
appointed an Acting Commandant General, for I 
have lost my right hand, although I do not mean 
to imply that I have not more of such men. I have 
lost the late Commandant General, Messrs. Kock 
and Wolmarans, formerly members of the Executive 
Raad. The State Secretary also is a new appoint- 
ment, and I alone remain of all the old members 
of the Executive Raad; nevertheless I find much 
help and support in the present members, and God 
too will support us; He will give us strength. Let 
us therefore fight in the name of the Lord to the end. 
For the Lord is our Commander-in-chief; He gives 
orders and He knows when to say, " Hitherto, but 
no further." 

It is wonderful to see how unanimously the other 
Powers are on our side, and how all Europe prays 
for us with one voice; and shall the Lord reject those 
prayers? Oh no, trust in the Lord and let us perse- 
vere under Him, and He will perform miracles. 
Even if it goes so far that I am sent to St. Helena. 
For then the Lord will bring back the people and 

S97 



APPENDIX 

set it free; and the same judgment shall fall upon 
Babylon, the cause of all the blood that has been 
shed. We are fighting for the liberty that God gave 
us. I say again: If brothers from this Raad and 
private persons, who fought in the name of the Lord 
and believed, should fall by the sword, then — God's 
word says it — they are sacrificed on the altar to the 
greater glory of His name and of the glorious 
Church which is waiting to be revealed in this sign 
of the times. The Church must be tried and purified, 
and therefore I cannot believe that it will be per- 
mitted that we shall be destroyed by this extraor- 
dinary war. The war will last until the Lord says, 
" Hitherto, but no further." Keep to that and fight 
with me! I place myself in the hands of the Lord. 
Whatever He may have decided for me, I shall kiss 
the rod with which He strikes me, for I too am guilty. 
Let each humble himself before the Lord. I have 
spoken. 

I certify that the above is a true and faithful copy. 

H. C. DE Bruijn Prince. 



398 



APPENDIX G 

Circular Dispatch from State President Kru- 
ger to the commandant general, assis- 
TANT Commandants General and Officers 

Machadodorp, 20 June 1900. 

Flinch not and fall not into unbelief ; for the time 
is at hand when God's people shall be tried in the 
fire. And the Beast shall have power to persecute 
Christ, and those who fall from faith and their 
Church will know Him not, nor shall they be allowed 
to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. But those who 
are true to the faith and fight in the name of the 
Lord, wearing their glorious crown of victory, they 
shall be received in the church of a thousand years 
and enter into glory everlasting. Brothers, I be- 
seech you abandon not your faith, but hold fast by it, 
and so go forth and fight in the name of the Lord. 
Look well into your hearts. If Cowardice hiding 
there whispers to you, " Fly," you are blasphemers, 
for listening to the Tempter you deny your God, 
your faith is dead. Believe as you would be saved 
that nothing happens here below without the will of 
God. Victory and the sword are in His hands and 
He gives both to those who fight in His name. Is 
not our God the same God who led Israel under the 
power of His miracles out of the land of Pharaoh? 
Did He not lead them safely through the Red Sea? 

399 



APPENDIX 

Did He not hide them in the thick cloud which was 
darkness to the enemy, but Hght to His children; 
for the column of cloud was built upon the word of 
the Lord, and if we trust Him as they trusted Him, 
it shall be our guide also through the darkness, lead- 
ing our feet safely to the light. But he who ceases 
to beheve the word of the Lord shall perish in the 
dark prison of his unbelief. Is not our God the 
same God who made water flow from a rock, refresh- 
ing all Israel? Was He not the Father of those 
three youths who chose death rather than deny Him? 
He is the same God who guarded Daniel in the lions' 
den. The lions harmed him not, but when the King 
commanded that Daniel's persecutors should be 
thrown into the den, the lions devoured them. Is He 
not the same God who walked upon the waves of the 
sea, and when He commanded Peter to come to Him, 
did not Peter, in his faith, obey? But, when the 
strength of his faith left him and he became afraid 
of the water, he sank, and the Lord took his hand 
and saved him and admonished him for his want 
of faith. Is He not our Lord to-day, the same Lord 
who, when the storm raged, laid silence upon the 
waves? Is He not the same Lord who laid His hands 
upon the lepers and they were healed? Is He not 
the same Lord our Saviour who said to His chil- 
dren : " Fear not, be strong of heart, I will not for- 
sake you, for you believe in My Father and in Me." 
And He prophesied war and judgments of war that 
we might not be affrighted; for these things must 
be. Is not oiu* Saviour the same Saviour who took 
upon Himself death and who rose the third day, re- 

400 



APPENDIX 

maining for forty days longer among mankind al- 
though the world saw Him not? But they saw Him 
when He ascended into Heaven before their eyes, 
teUing them to fight the good fight and He would 
come again. And this same God our Lord and Sa- 
viour, who has brought us here from our distant 
home, and given us our hberty, and performed mira- 
cles on our behalf, dare we doubt that He who com- 
menced this work wiU fiinish it? No, what He has 
raised up He will not allow to fall to the ground. I 
repeat, He is the same God who helped Gideon and 
his three hundred warriors, who led and strengthened 
them in battle and in whose hand hes every victory. 
Dear brothers, dear brothers, I beseech you, lose not 
your faith. Depend each one upon himself and fight 
in the name of the Lord. I am told that every one 
wishes to go to his own district, in order to fight there. 
That will cause confusion, and the result will be bad 
or at least without value. Let everybody fight where 
he happens to be, under whatever officer he finds him- 
self ; be courageous, firm, obedient and loyal, for that 
means victory. Observe the reports of our Com- 
mission from Europe. Observe the proclamation of 
Lord Roberts in the Orange Free State, and you 
will see that it is nothing but a decoy-bird. Accord- 
ing to Psalm 83 the enemies of old said that the peo- 
ple shall not exist in Christ's Kingdom. Sahsbury 
and Chamberlain stand convicted by their own words : 
" They shall not exist." But the Lord says, " This 
people shall exist," and Christ is our Commander- 
in-chief, who leads us with His Word. Dear bro- 
thers, once more I pray you, let us not fall from 

26 401 



APPENDIX 

faith, but follow His commands. He often leads 
His children through the barren desert, where it 
seems as if they could never get through. But if 
we will only trust Him, I assure you He will be our 
guide. He who trusts in God's guidance is under 
the protection of the King of Kings and safe through 
the darkest night. His word is truth everlasting. 
See Psalm 92. 

Let this be read to all officers and burghers, for 
our present sufferings are nothing compared with 
everlasting glory. Let us obey our Saviour. 



402 



APPENDIX H 

Telegram from the State President to the 
Commandant General 

Machadodorp, 7 July, 1900. 
Officers and bLirghers, place all joxir faith in the 
Lord. He is our highest General, who turns all 
hearts whithersoever He will, and He says " This 
danger is Mine," and the final victory is also in His 
hand. Now follow our fight from the beginning 
until to-day: see if the Lord does not still stand on 
oiu* side with miracles, see how He has blessed our 
arms, so that as a rule so few men fall on our side 
and so many on the enemy's that, in spite of the great 
multitude of troops and guns opposed to us and the 
thousands of shots fired at us, the enemy's arms have 
not been blessed. Brothers, we must have become 
unbehevers and lost sight of God's authority, if we 
doubt that He is on our side. The enemy has until 
now flooded our country with his vastly superior 
forces, which we have not been able to repel on every 
side; he has not done so by force of arms, so that 
there is no doubt but that an end will come to this 
flood and that the victory will be oui-s. So do not 
flinch in the faith and do not be alarmed because some 
of us fall away. The Apostle Paul has already said 
this before me in 1 Timothy. But I look at the mat- 
ter thus: Some of our burghers, who, overpowered 

403 



APPENDIX 

by the enemy, were obKged to lay down their arms, 
I excuse, if they join again at the first opportmiity, 
in order to go on fighting; but, when others go so 
far as to lay down their arms and take the oath and 
not return, then that, according to the Scriptures, is 
a falling away from God, though, to be sure, such 
men will say, even as the Beast, that they believe in 
the Lord. OBut the Lord says, " Show Me thy faith 
by thy works." And, when they then perform the 
works of the Beast, in order to betray their brothers, 
then they assume a faith which is dead. See Revela- 
tion xiv. 9, 10 : "If any man worship the Beast and 
his image, the same shall drink of the wine of the 
wrath of God," and so on. Brothers, any of you who 
may perhaps have gone so far, turn back and humble 
yourselves before the Lord: He will forgive you; 
and then fight bravely in His name. Read this tele- 
gram to the officers and burghers at every op- 
portunity. 



404 



APPENDIX I 

Circular Dispatch from the State President 
TO the Commandant General, Assistant 
Commandants General, and Officers 

Machadodorp, 24 July, 1900. 
I see by your report and many other reports that 
the spirit of unbelief walketh about hke a roaring 
lion seeking to make our men lose heart. Brothers, 
you must understand, when you let the enemy pass 
you and you begin to hesitate whether you shall at- 
tack him or not, you drive the others who still remain 
behind, in the whole country, wherever they hear this, 
to hesitate and doubt in their turn; but, when you 
do your duty and attack him wherever he shows him- 
self, then you inspire our men who have remained on 
the farms in the RepubHc and who hear this with 
courage to help in the fighting, though they and we 
too be but few. For the victory is not in the hand 
of the greater force, but in the hand of the Lord, 
and the Lord gives it to them who fight in His name, 
however few we may be. Listen to the words of the 
Lord: " When He forsakes the people. He blunts 
its sword and does not bless it ; " and see, we are con- 
vinced of that, that the Lord has not blunted our 
sword, but, on the contrary, has blessed it wonder- 
fully against the enemy. Wherever the enemy at- 
tacks us and fires thousands and thousands of shots 

405 



APPENDIX 

at the few of us, our few shots hit many more of 
his men than do his of ours. Is it not the spirit of 
unbelief that hovers through the air, to bring us to 
doubt and thus to make us guilty before the Lord 
and to let us doubt that all is within the power of the 
Lord? And has it not yet become evident to you 
that, as I said in my former sentence, we live in a 
time when we are being tried by faith? He who 
stands firm in the Lord can say, with the Apostle 
Paul and with Timothy : "Be not discouraged when 
you see blasphemers, for some must fall away." And 
the Lord Jesus Himself says, in Matthew xxiv., that 
there shall be wars and rumors of wars : " But see 
that ye be not troubled, for all these things must 
come to pass, but the end is not yet." Remember 
1 Peter v. verses 7 and 8 : " Casting all your care 
upon Him; for He careth for you." And verse 8 
says: " But be sober, be vigilant against the Devil, 
whom resist steadfast in the faith, for he walketh 
about like a raging lion seeking whom he may de- 
vour." Then see in Matthew, when the Evil Spirit 
took the Lord Jesus into a high mountain and said: 
" All these things will I give Thee, if Thou wilt fall 
down and worship me." Then the Lord Jesus said: 
" Get thee hence, Satan; thou shalt worship the Lord 
thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." Brothers, 
mark me, that is the good fight, to win the cro^vn. 
And he who cannot fight the good fight shall not 
win the crown. For then he falls and is joined with 
the evil spirit of the air, who flies with his great force 
over the earth. And so he receives the mark of the 
Beast in the forehead and will drink with the Beast 

406 



APPENDIX 

of the wine of the wrath of God. Read Revelation 
xiv. verses 9, 10, 12, and 13. Note, in particular, 
verse 12, which says : " Here is the patience of the 
saints; here are they that keep the conunandments 
of God and the faith of the Lord Jesus." No, no, 
my brothers: let him who has grown faint-hearted 
fly to the Lord and remain faithful to Him. And 
by your faithful acts you will convert thousands 
more to the faith, so that they may fight for the 
liberty which the Lord has given us. He who says 
that he beheves in the faith of the Lord Jesus and 
His works and goes with the Evil Spirit, that man's 
faith is a dead faith, for the Lord saj'-s, " Show me 
thy faith by thy works." And see the promise of 
the Lord in Psalm 108, where He says that they 
who fight through God shall do so vahantly, and the 
Lord will dehver them and tread down their enemies. 
Keep courage therefore, you God-fearing band; the 
Lord will display His strength to your weakness. 
Also I will call your attention to the history of the 
American War of Independence, where they had to 
fight against hundreds and thousands, and, although 
their nimaber was at length reduced to less than 2,000 
men, yet they conquered and the Lord gave them 
back their hberty. Now each of you knows as I do 
how unjust and godless the war is, as we were will- 
ing to yield almost everything, if we could only keep 
our Hberty and our independence. See Psalm 83, 
how the evil spirit of the air said that the vaHant 
fighter named Israel must not exist, and the Lord 
says, " He shall exist." And see in our declaration, 
which we sent to Salisbury, that we only wished to 

407 



APPENDIX 

keep our independence. Then the same spirit an- 
swered that this nation must not exist, or, to use his 
own words: " I will not permit your nation to con- 
tinue to be a nation." Dear brothers, through God's 
Word I am sure of this, that the victory is ours. But 
let us remain true and fight in the name of the Lord, 
on the strength of His promise, and I request the 
officers often to read and re-read this notice to the 
burghers. 



408 



APPENDIX J 

Proclamation by President Steyn against the 
Annexation of the Orange Free State 

Whereas, in the month of October, 1899, an unjust 
war was forced upon the people of the Orange Free 
State and the South African Repubhc by Great 
Britain, and those two small RepubHcs have, for 
more than eight months, maintained, and are still 
maintaining, the unequal contest against the mighty 
British Empire; 

Whereas a certain proclamation of the 24th of 
May, 1900, alleging to be issued by Lord Roberts, 
Field Marshal and Commander-in-Chief of the 
British forces in South Africa, is published to-day 
and contains the statement that the Orange Free 
State has been conquered by Her Majesty's troops 
and is annexed to the British Empire, while the 
forces of the Orange Free State are still in the field 
and the Orange Free State has not been conquered, 
and the aforesaid proclamation is therefore opposed 
to international law ; 

Whereas it is well known that the British author- 
ities themselves have recently admitted that the 
Orange Free State was excellently governed, and 
it therefore becomes an offence against civilization 
as well as an infraction of the fundamental rightjs 

409 



APPENDIX 

of such a nation to rob it of its liberty under any 
pretex whatsoever; 

And whereas I deem it desirable immediately to 
inform all whom it may concern that the aforesaid 
proclamation is not recognized by the Government 
and people of the Orange Free State: 

Now I, Martinus Theunis Steyn, State President 
of the Orange Free State, after deliberation with the 
Executive Raad, do hereby proclaim, in the name of 
the independent people of the Orange Free State, 
that the aforesaid annexation is not recognized and is 
null, void and invalid. 

Given under my hand at Reitz in the Orange Free 
State on the 11th day of the month of July 1900. 

M. T. Steyn, 
State President. 



410 



INDEX 



INDEX 



Aapjes Eiver: First shot of Civil 
War fired at, 77 

Accidents to President Kruger: 
Leg broken at Schoonkloof 
rarm, 1866, 98; thumb blown 
off by exploding rifle, 31; treat- 
ment of wound, 32, 33 

Adendorff trek, 206; Kruger 's op- 
position to the, and resulting 
loss of popularity, 207 

Afrikander Party : Anti-British 
movement throughout South 
Africa— Sir A. Milner's declara- 
tion, 306; Cape Election of 
1897, victory of the Afrikander 
Party, 269 

Afrikanderdom, power of, must be 
broken: Sir A. Miner's policy, 
258 

Agriculture : President Kruger 's 
advocacy of promotion of, 168 

Alliance of the Orange Free State 
with the South African Eepub- 
lic — Negotiations for closer al- 
liance: Failure of 1887 nego- 
tiations, 172, 173; Potchef- 
stroom Conference, 1889 — Terms 
of alliance concluded, 196; po- 
litical alliance concluded at 
Bloemf ontein after the Jameson 
Eaid, 273, 275 

Ancestry of President Kruger, 3 
note 

Annexation of South African Ke- 
public by Great Britain in 1877 : 
Sir T. Shepstone's mission to 
Pretoria, etc., 112; annexation 
accomplished, 119; arrival of Sir 
T. Shepstone in Pretoria, 115; 
Burgers ', President, mistakes 
used to justify annexation, 119, 
120 ; Carnarvon, Lord, burghers ' 
petition to, 129 ; commission ap« 
pointed to discuss matters with 
Sir T. Shepstone, Mr. Kruger a 
member of, 112; confederation 



with British Dominions in South 
Africa proposed, Mr. Kruger 's 
opposition, 113, 119; deputa- 
tions to protest against annex- 
ation — Commission of delegates 
to Europe and America ap- 
pointed to appeal for interces- 
sion of Foreign Powers, etc., 
125, 130; failure to obtain inter- 
vention, 127; second deputation 
dispatched to England, Mr. 
Kruger a member of, 129; ex- 
penses, provisions for, 129; 
Frere, Sir Bartle, deputation's 
interview with, 130; Hicks- 
Beach's, Sir M., attitude— re- 
fusal to receive deputation, re- 
ply to memorial, etc., 131; mass 
meeting at Wonderf ontein to re- 
port on results, 140; Executive 
Eaad's protest, 121; " inher- 
ent " weakness argument, fail- 
ure of Eepublic to subdue Se- 
cucuni used as pretext for an- 
nexation, 116; Secucuni's peti- 
tion for peace — " Duumvirate " 
commission to investigate, Mr. 
Kruger 's opposition, etc., 116, 
117; Jooste's, Dr., letter on na- 
ture of opposition, Mr. Kruger 's 
suggestion of a plebiscite re- 
jected by British Government, 
126; Jorissen's, Dr., opinion as 
to the annexation, 126; Kru- 
ger 's. President, attitude. Sir T. 
Shepstone 's misstatement, 126, 
128; Kruger 's. President, pre- 
vision of Sir T. Shepstone's in- 
tentions. President Burgers ' 
disregard of President Kruger 's 
warning, 119; plebiscite resolved 
on, 127; result of plebiscite, 
131; Shepstone's, Sir T., op- 
position, 130; protest to be 
taken to England, President 
Burgers' proposal, 119; repeal 



41 S 



INDEX 



of annexation, Boer endeavor to 
obtain — Arrest of Pretorius and 
Bok on charge of high treason, 
142; Cape Colony, appeal to, 
139; Cetewayo, alliance with, 
proposed — President KJruger 's 
opposition, 137; Gladstone, fail- 
ure of appeal to, 146; Kleinfon- 
tein meetings — Frere, Sir B., re- 
ception of, 138; Joubert's 
speech, 137; Kruger's, Presi- 
dent, speech, 137; last petition 
to Governor of the Transvaal, 
172; Orange Free State, support 
of request for repeal by, 139; 
petition to British Government 
proposed — Sir B. Frere 's agree- 
ment to forward petition, 139; 
preparations for war, 146; proc- 
lamation of British Government 
offering self-government, Mr. 
Kruger's opinion on, 143; re- 
sort to force proposed, 137, 138; 
Kruger 's, President, endeavors 
to maintain peace, 137; Kru- 
ger's, President, warning, 137; 
War of Independence (see that 
title) ; Wonderf ontein meeting 
— Kruger's, Mr,, warning to 
burghers, 137; popular resolu- 
tion against annexation, 139; 
Sand Eiver Convention, annexa- 
tion a violation of, 119; Shep- 
stone's, Sir T., declaration that 
he was authorized and prepared 
to annex the South African Ee- 
public — Mr. Kruger 's protest, 
119; South African War partly 
due to the annexation, 120; vil- 
lage population favoring annex- 
ation, 114; Volksraad, extraor- 
dinary meeting of, 116; Bur- 
gers', President, attempt to ex- 
clude burghers who refused to 
pay the Secucuni war tax, 112 

Annexation of the neighboring 
colonies on outbreak of the war 
of 1899: Mr. Steyn's speech in 
the Volksraad, 382 

Anstruther, Colonel : Death at bat- 
tle of Bronkhorstspruit, 154 

Appendices: A, 333; B, 368; C, 
376; D, 381; E, 385; P, 391; 
G, 399; H, 403; I, 405; J, 409 

April (Kaflfir servant of President 



Kruger), literary attainments 
of, 15; Kaflfir missionary's diffi- 
culties caused by, 16 

Arbitration on points in dispute 
between Great Britain and the 
South African Eepublic — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's proposals : Bloem- 
f ontein conference, 273; Cham- 
berlain's, Mr., rejection of 
proposals, 272; dispatch of 27th 
July, 1899, 279; foreign element 
other than Orange Free State, 
exclusion of — Condition laid 
down in alternative proposal to 
Mr. Chamberlain's joint com- 
mission proposal on the fran- 
chise question, 282, 283; Cham- 
berlain's, Mr., dispatch of 30th 
August, 1899, and Mr. Reitz's 
reply, 284, 286; Eeitz's, Mr., 
letter of 9th June, 1899, 275; re- 
ply, 277; ultimatum of 9th Oc- 
tober, 1899, 304, 305 

Armaments of the South African 
Eepublic — Purchase of arms and 
ammunition after the Jameson 
Eaid: Defenceless condition of 
the Eepublic, 265; further pur- 
chases on discovery of Mr. 
Chamberlain's complicity in the 
Eaid, 247, 248 

Army of the South African Ee- 
public — Commandant General: 
Botha, Mr. Louis, appointment 
of, 309, 389; Joubert, General, 
death of, 309; Ejruger's, Mr., 
address to, on his election as 
president (12 May, 1898), 360; 
war between Great Britain, 
South African Eepublic, and 
Orange Free State (see that 
title) 

BaUoon ascent by President Kru- 
ger in Paris, 132 

Ballot: First election by ballot 
for the presidency of the South 
African Eepublic, 258 

Bantjes, Jan: President Kruger's 
identity discovered to Mrs. 
Strigdom by, 85 

Barkly West: Diamond-fields dis- 
covered in 1870, 105 

Basuto War: First Basuto War 
—Orange Free State troubles 



414 



INDEX 



with Chief Moshesh, 60; Kru- 
ger 's, President, successful 
mediation, 61, 63 

Basuto War of 1865: Council of 
war at Malap's Town, decision 
of, 96; Brand's, President, re- 
fusal to endorse — Withdrawal of 
South African Eepublic burgh- 
ers, 97; Katskatsberg, fight at, 
number of cattle captured, etc., 
97; Kruger, President, sent to 
assist the Orange Free Staters, 
95; Malap Mountains, attack on, 
96; surprise of Boer camp by 
Moshesh, 96 

Bezuidenhout, Field Cornet: Dis- 
tress laid on wagon of, 149; 
armed resistance to forced sale 
of wagon, beginning of the War 
of Independence, 149 

Big game hunting: President 
Kruger 's experience, 17-31 

Birth of President Kruger, 3 

Bismarck, Prince: Reception of 
Boer delegates in 1884, 177 

Bloemf ontein : Conference be- 
tween Sir A. Milner and 
President Kruger at Bloem- 
f ontein, 31st May, 1899: Com- 
pliant attitude of the South 
African Eepublic and unyield- 
ing attitude of Sir A. Milner, 
269-275; Kruger 's. President, 
offers and demands, 273; MU- 
ner's. Sir A., demands, 273; 
conference between South Af- 
rican Republic and Orange Free 
State, with the object of bring- 
ing about a closer alliance, 
259 

Blue Mountains, Malapoch puni- 
tive expedition to: Efforts of 
British subjects to escape mil- 
itary service, 218, 219 

Bodenstein, Field Cornet: Re- 
capture of cattle raided by 
Moshesh from Orange Free 
Staters, 60 

Bok, Mr. W. E. : Arrest on 
charge of high treason, 142; 
commission of delegates to 
England and America, secre- 
tary to, 129; secretary to 
Executive Raad, appointment as, 
189; secretary to second depu- 



tation of protest against an- 
nexation, 129 

Boshoff, President of Orange Free 
State: Boer representative in 
transfer of Orange Free State 
from British to Boers, 56; com- 
pact between Orange Free State 
and South African Republic, 
Boshoff 's intended violation of, 
averted by President Kruger, 56- 
59; Pretorius's, M. W., claims 
on Orange Free State, alliance 
with Commandant General 
Schoeman to resist, 57; KJru- 
ger's, President, opinion on 
Boshoff 's action, 58; retire- 
ment, 70 

Botha, Mr. Louis: Appointment 
as commandant general, 309, 
389 

Boundary between Orange Free 
State and South African Repub- 
lic: President Kruger appointed 
to represent South African Re- 
public in deciding question, 85 

Brand, President (Orange Free 
State) : Basuto War, refusal to 
endorse resolution passed by 
council of war at Malap 's Town, 
97; Civil War, advice as to final 
settlement of, 92; death, 195; 
offensive and defensive alliance' 
between Orange Free State and 
South African Republic, rejec- 
tion of, 196; War of Indepen- 
dence, peace negotiations, 159; 
third proclamation, opposition 
to publication of, 160 

British Government: Annexation 
of South African Republic in 
1877, attitude as to — Lord 
Carnarvon 's statements, 126 ; 
diamond-fields of South Af- 
rica, contention as to owner- 
ship (see diamond-fields) ; Jame- 
son Raid enquiry, charge against 
the Government of withholding 
telegrams proving Mr. Chamber- 
lain 's complicity, 247, 248; 
Orange Free State, handing over 
to Pretorius on behalf of Boer 
emigrants, 56 

British policy in South Africa: 
Chamberlain's, Mr., policy of 
provocation, 267-272; character 



415 



INDEX 



of, lies, treachery, intrigue, 112, 
222, 236, 242; annexation of 
1877 a typical case, 126, 138 

British South African Company 
(see Chartered Company) 

Bronkhorstspruit, battle of, 153; 
treachery, charge of, against 
Boers, 154 

Brown: Bewaarplaatsen allotment 
litigation. Chief Justice Kotz6 
disputing validity of Volksraad 
resolutions, 255; dismissal of 
the Chief Justice, 257; Kru- 
ger's. President, defence, 356 

Bubonic plague conference: Presi- 
dent Kruger's announcement in 
the Volksraad, 370 

Buffalo-hunting: President Kru- 
ger's experiences, 24 

Burger, Mr. S. W. : Adendorff 
trek, opposition to President 
Kruger, 207; appointment as 
vice-president of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic, nomination, 389; 
expiration of term of office. 
President Kruger 's announce- 
ment in the Volksraad, 368 

Burgers, President : Advanced 
views of, opposition of burgh- 
ers, etc., 109; dissatisfac- 
tion among burghers with the 
president 's government. 111 ; 
Kruger 's, Mr., offer to secure re- 
election of, if Burgers would de- 
fend independence of the South 
African Eepublic, 115; new 
constitution drawn up by, 118; 
rejection by people, 119; rail- 
way from Lorenzo Marques to 
Pretoria, project of — journey 
to Europe to raise loan, 109; 
opposition of burghers, 110, 112, 
118; religious views, liberality 
of — Mr. Kruger 's disapproval, 
etc., 110; Seeucuni war tax — at- 
tempt to exclude from Volksraad 
burghers who refused to pay 
tax, 112 ; Seeucuni War of 1870 
(see that title) ; Shepst one's. Sir 
T., mission to Pretoria — presi- 
dent's disregard of Mr. Kru- 
ger's warning, 119; state presi- 
dent, election as, 108; Kruger's, 
Mr., statement at inauguration 
of President Burgers, 108 



Burgher rights: Conditions upon 
which a burgher of either Ee- 
public should receive burgher 
rights in the sister state, 260; 
Swaziland convention, terms of, 
223 

Caledon Eiver encampment, 6 

Calveyn, Chief: Eebellion in 
Marico district, 170 

Cannibalism among Kaffirs: Evi- 
dences discovered by President 
Kruger during expedition to 
avenge Potgieter's murder, 43 

Cape Colony: Annexation of the 
South African Eepublic; burgh- 
ers' appeal to Cape Colony to 
support their request for re- 
peal, 144; governor, appoint- 
ment of Sir A. Milner, 258; 
Kaffir cattle raids — Boers' 
cattle impoiraded for war costs 
after recovery by owners, 4; 
Moshette— Montsioa War, volun- 
teers from the colony, 170; 
slave emancipation prior to trek 
of 1835, 4; tariff war with the 
South African Eepublic (see 
tariff war) 

Carnarvon, Lord (Secretary of 
State for the Colonies) : British 
Government's attitude on the 
annexation question, statements 
as to, 126; petition against an- 
nexation of South African Ee- 
public addressed to, 129 

CeUiers, Sarel: Defeat of Mata- 
bele attack on Vechtkop Laager, 
8 

Cetewayo's rebellion (see Zulu 
War of 1879) 

Chamberlain, Mr. J.: Arbitra- 
tion — rejection of South Af- 
rican Eepublic proposals, 279; 
dispatches with the object 
of embittering the British 
people against the Eepublic, al- 
leged, 248; franchise question, 
stages of (see titles franchise 
question and franchise law) ; 
home rule for Johannesburg 
proposed, 245; publication of 
dispatch in the London press 
before it had reached the Gov- 
ernment of the South African 



416 



INDEX 



Eepublic, 245; invitation to 
President Kruger to come to 
England to confer on Transvaal 
matters — discussion of Article 
4 of the London Convention 
precluded, 245, 249; Kruger 's, 
President, counter conditions, 
246; Jameson Eaid — Chamber- 
lain's, Mr., gratitude to the 
South African Eepublic for 
handing over the culprits to the 
British Government, 242; com- 
plicity, charge of, 228, 248; 
inquiry— charge against the 
British Government of withhold- 
ing telegrams proving Mr. 
Chamberlain 's complicity, 247 ; 
telegrams cited in evidence of 
the charge, 249; London Con- 
vention of 1884— violation of, 
by the Government of the Ee- 
public, alleged, 279; " Second 
Yolksraad of no practical use " 
contention, 199 ; suzerainty 
question — contention that the 
Convention of 1881 held good, 
176, 279; tariff war between 
Cape Colony and the South 
African Eepublic- Mr. Cham- 
berlain's ultimatum to the Ee- 
public on condition that Cape 
Colony bore half the cost of a 
war, 228; war between Great 
Britain, South African Eepublic 
and Orange Free State— reply to 
Mr. Kruger 's application for 
peace negotiations, President 
Kruger 's comments, 392 

Chartered Company : Formation 
of, 194; shares given to influ- 
ential people in England, 193; 
strategic positions necessary for 
the Jameson Eaid, negotiations 
for extension of territory, 249; 
Swaziland Convention binding 
South African Eepublic to as- 
sist the company, 223 

Chastisement and punishmen,t, dis- 
tinction between, 59 

Chelmsford, Lord : Commander-in- 
chief in Zulu War of 1879, 133 ; 
Ulundi, victory at, 134 

Chief Justice dispiiting validity 
of resolutions of the Volksraad 
(see Kotze) 



Chief Justice and Judges of the 
Supreme Court and State At- 
torney: President Kruger 's ad- 
dress to, on his election as presi- 
dent (12 May, 1898), 350 

Childhood of President Kruger, 4; 
cattle-herding during the trek 
of 1835, 5 

Children: Boer custom of giving 
two animals to each child as his 
special property, 5 ; education of 
Boer children during Great 
Trek, 11; education, religion, 
etc. — President Kruger 's ad- 
dress on his election as presi- 
dent (12 May, 1898), 214, 333; 
Kruger 's, President, children by 
second wife, 14 

ChristelijJc-Gereformeerde Church : 
Kruger 's. President, member- 
ship, 75; political disabilities at- 
taching to membership, 75; re- 
moval of disabilities, 76; union 
of churches in 1881 not joined 
by, 207 

Christiania, village of: Eemnant 
of diamond territory secured by 
South African Eepublic, 107 

Churches of South African Eepub- 
lic: Dopper or Canting Church, 
Kruger 's, President, member- 
ship in, 75; political disabili- 
ties attaching to membership in, 
75; removal of disabilities, 76; 
State Church: Intention of sub- 
stituting Dopper for Servormde 
as State Church attributed to 
Mr. Kruger by Schoeman, 78; 
union between Eervormde 
and Nederduitsch-Gereformeerde 
Church in 1881, 207; abandon- 
ment of union — church property 
dispute, 208; conference in 
1891; President Kruger 's at- 
tempt to compose quarrel, 208, 
209; Dopper Church remaining 
outside the union, 207 

Civil War of 1861-1864: Com- 
mandant General Schoeman 's 
violation of the constitution 
— armed opposition to Grobler's 
presidency, etc., 71; Aapjes 
Eiver, first shot fired at, 77; 
abolition of Volksraad and con- 
ferring of legislative power on 



27 



417 



INDEX 



Executive Eaad — General Schoe- 
man's proposal, 71; boundary 
question — President Kruger ap- 
pointed to represent the South 
African Eepublic, 85; council of 
war in Pretoria, 82, 85; fight- 
ing north of Potchefstroom — 
President Kruger 's action, 
flight of General Sehoeman, 80; 
fines collected by President 
Kruger, 82; fresh complications, 
President Kruger again called 
on to interpose, 74; Heidelberg- 
district meeting, 82; Kruger 's, 
President, amusing experience on 
the way to the meeting, 83-86; 
Jeppe, Steyn's demand for sur- 
render of, 72; joint commission 
meeting near Potchefstroom, 
failure to secure peace, 77, 79; 
Kruger 's, President, action pre- 
vious to outbreak of hostilities, 
69, 73, 74; Kruger 's. President, 
refusal to pursue the enemy 
after Zwartkopje, 89; Kruger 's 
and Fourie's, Messrs., mission 
to the Orange Free State to 
carry out terms of peace con- 
ference, 91; opposition commis- 
sion nominated to see that the 
Government adhered strictly 
to the peace conference deci- 
sions, 91; peace conference af- 
ter Zwartkopje, constitution and 
decisions of, 90, 91; Potchef- 
stroom, fighting at — artillery 
duel, 79; Kruger 's, President, 
stratagem to obtain release of 
prisoners taken, etc., 86, 87; 
Pretoria meeting — resolution to 
carry out Volksraad decision, 
73, 74; second joint commission. 
President Kruger 's proposals 
carried, etc., 81, 82; settlement 
— amnesty — President Kruger 's 
proposal agreed to by the Volks- 
raad, 90 ; Brand 's , President, 
advice, 91; special court ap- 
pointed by Volksraad to settle 
matters in dispute, 73, 74; court 
summoned — decision in case of 
Andries du Toit, 82; Sehoe- 
man 's. Commandant General, 
action, 72, 74; second joint 
commission, decisions of, 81; 



Volksraad 's decision — deposition 
of Commandant General Sehoe- 
man, etc., 73, 74; State Church 
— President Kruger charged 
vdth intention to compel substi- 
tution of Dopper for Hervormde 
Church as State Church — report 
spread by Sehoeman, 78; Kru- 
ger 's. President, statement to 
Jan Kock, 78, 79; Steyn, Jo- 
hannes, appointment of, by 
Sehoeman as commandant gen- 
eral, 71; Zwartkopje — defeat of 
Sehoeman 's party, 88, 89 

Clergy: President KJruger's ad- 
dress to, on his election as presi- 
dent (12 May, 1898), 361 

Closing the drifts (see Tariff War) 

Colesberg : Swaziland Convention, 
conference between President 
Kruger and Sir H. Loch, 224 

Cologne: President Kruger 's re- 
ception in 1900, 325 

Colonizing expedition of 1845, 
President Kruger 's share in, 
etc., 13, 14 

Commandant General of the South 
African EepubUc: Botha, Mr. 
Louis, appointment of, 309, 389; 
Joubert, General Piet, election 
of, 151; re-election in 1884, 
189; Kruger, election of, 82; 
re-election after the Civil War, 
92; Pretorius, M. W., appoint- 
ment, 56 

Communication of the South Afri- 
can Eepublic and Orange Pree 
State with the outer world: 
Boer attempt to acquire a har- 
bor at Durban, 9; British an- 
nexation of Sambaanland and 
Umbigesaland, Transvaal's last 
outlet to the sea cut off by, 224 

Company promoting on valueless 
property : Preventive measures, 
President Kruger 's speech in 
the Volksraad (12 May, 1898), 
342 

Confederation of South Africa 
under the British flag: Messrs. 
Joubert and Kruger deputed to 
urge Cape Parliament to oppo- 
sition, 158 

Constitution of the South African 
Eepublic: Assimilation of the 



41S 



INDEX 



constitution of the Orange Free 
State to that of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic, 370; new consti- 
tution drawn up by President 
Burgers, 118; rejection by the 
people, 118; revision of — Presi- 
dent Kruger's promise of, 256; 
Kotze, Chief Justice, opposition 
to President Kruger's policy — 
dismissed from chief justiceship, 
257; Kiniger's, President, de- 
fence of his action in regard 
to Chief Justice Kotze, 406; 
Schoeman 's. Commandant Gen- 
eral, violation of (see Civil War) 

Convention of 1881 (see Pretoria 
Convention) 

Convention of 1884 (see London 
Convention) 

Coolies: Kesiding only in quarters 
set apart for them, Mr. Kru- 
ger's announcement in the 
Volksraad, 373 

Criticism, Eight of: Kotze, Chief 
Justice, adopting the * ' Devil 's 
Principle ' ' — Dismissed from of- 
fice, 257 and note; Kruger's, 
President, defence, 359; law re- 
quiring judicial functionaries 
not to assume the right of toet- 
sing the validity of the laws, 257 

Cronje, General Piet: Bezuiden- 
hout's wagon, forced sale of — 
Cronje 's armed resistance to 
sale, 149; Jameson's surrender, 
237; Massouw's entrenchments, 
storming of, 179; triumvirate's 
proclamation, printing of — Cron- 
je 's mission to Potehefstroom, 
151, 152 

Customs duties dispute (see Tar- 
ife War) 

Customs union for South Africa: 
President Kruger's refusal to 
consider, 203 

David, Kaffir missionary to Kaf- 
firs, 16 

Delagoa Bay: President Kruger's 
detention at the Portuguese 
governor's house on the way to 
Europe in 1900, 318 

Delagoa Bay Eailway: Burgers 's. 
President, project, 109; opposi- 
tion of burghers, 109, 113; 



concession granted to private 
persons — foundation of Nether- 
lands South African Eailway 
Company, 177; Kruger's, Presi- 
dent, defence of concession, 178; 
petitions against concession, 
178; Volksraad 's agreement to 
concession, 179; grant voted 
by the Volksraad to enable bur- 
ghers to inspect the whole rail- 
way, 225; loan — failure of at- 
tempt to raise loan in Holland, 
177; opening, 225; Portuguese 
Government, conditions imposed 
by, 203, 204; Portuguese offer 
to build, 177 

Delvers Committee established, 
182 

Derby, Lord: London Convention 
negotiations, 175, 176; dispatch 
enclosing draft of the London 
Convention, 250 

Diamond-fields in South African 
Eepublie territory : Depression 
among the poorer classes — Ee- 
lief measures, etc., President 
Kruger's speech in the Volks- 
raad (12 May, 1898), 340 

Discovery in 1870, 105 

Dispute as to ownership of dia- 
mond territory: Arbitration 
agreed to by President Pre- 
torius. President Kruger's dis- 
approval, 106; British Govern- 
ment contention that the 
diamond territory belonged to 
native chiefs Montsioa and Gasi- 
bone, 106; Christiania, village 
of, retained by South African 
Eepublie, 107; commission ap- 
pointed by South African Ee- 
publie to attend discussions 
of Arbitration Court— protest 
against Governor Keate's judg- 
ment and Pretorius's action, 
107; Keate's, Governor, decision 
in favor of chiefs, 106; Mo- 
bile's, Chief, evidence, 106; 
Pretorius 's. President, resigna- 
tion due to result of arbitration, 
107; Kruger's, President, re- 
ception by English miners, 105 

DiTcTceton, value of, 5 

Dingaan's horde: Attack on Boer 
settlers in Natal, 9 



419 



INDEX 



Dinizulu, son of Cetewayo: Land 
granted to Boers in return for 
assistance against Usibepu, 184 

Doornkop: Surrender of Dr. 
Jameson to Commandant Cronje, 
237 

Dopper or Canting Church: Deri- 
vation and meaning of dopper, 
75, 76; foundation in 1859, 75; 
Kruger, President, a member, 
75; political disabilities attach- 
ing to membership, 75; removal 
of disabilities, 76; tenets of, 
etc., 76; union of churches in 
1881, Dopper Church remaining 
outside, 207 

Dordrecht, Holland: President 
Kruger's visit, 328 

Drifts, closing of (see TarifE War) 

Durban: Boer attempt to acquire 
harbor, 9 

Dutch language as the state lan- 
guage: Educational medium — 
President Kruger 's principle, 

214, note; Kruger's, President, 
address to the children on his 
election as president (12 May, 
1898), 214, 215, 364, note; 
Swaziland convention, terms of, 
222 

Dynamite explosion at Johannes- 
burg, 19 February, 1896, 244 

Dynamite monopoly: Abolition of 
— suggestions in report of the 
Industrial Commission, 253; re- 
duction in price of dynamite — 
President Kruger's speech (12 
May, 1898), 386 

Edgar case: Mr. Chamberlain's 

misrepresentations, 267 
Education: Direction of education, 

successive appointment of Dr. 

du Toit and Professor Mansvelt, 

215, 216, note; grants to schools 
in which education was not 
given in Dutch — law of 1892, 
217, note; Great Trek of 1836, 
means taken for education of 
children, 11, 12; Kruger's, 
President, education, extent and 
nature of, 11, 12; Kruger's, 
President, views on, 168; lan- 
guages, study of. President 
Kruger's belief in the Dutch 



language as the one and only 
educational medium, 215, note, 
217, note; law of 1882, faulty 
execution of, 215, note; Paris 
Exhibition of 1900, distinctions 
won by the South African Ee- 
public at, 217, note; reform. 
President Kruger 's misgivings 
as to grants, qualification of 
teachers and higher education 
of women, 216, note; religious 
instruction — education law of 
1874, defects of, 215, note; 
Kruger's, President, speech on 
installation as president (12 
May, 1898), 214, 366, note; 
Uitlanders, education of— 
erection of schools at the cost 
of the state, 217, note 

Eloff, Field Cornet Sarel: Cap- 
ture by Viljoen at Potchef- 
stroom, 86; escape, 86; com- 
mandeering burghers of the 
Zwartruggen district, 88 

Eloff, Lieutenant, taken prisoner 
by Dr. Jameson, 237 

Elephant hunting: President Kru- 
ger's experiences, 21; race with 
an elephant, 27 

England: Invitation from Mr. 
Chamberlain to visit England to 
confer on Transvaal matters — 
discussion of Article 4 of the 
London Convention precluded, 
245, 249; Kruger's, President, 
counter conditions, 246; Kru- 
ger's, President, visits— first 
visit in 1877, 125; second visit, 
129-131; third visit as member 
of 1884 deputation, 174; rela- 
tions with the South African 
Eepublic (see titles British Gov- 
ernment, British policy, inter- 
vention, etc.) 

English lord and President Kru- 
ger, anecdote of, 6, note 

English population of the South 
African Eepublic : Educational 
advantages at the cost of the 
state, 217, note 

Enslin: Death by treachery at 
Zwartkopje, 89 

Envoy extraordinary of the South 
African Eepublic in Europe: 
Appointment of Dr. Leyds, 264 



420 



INDEX 



Europe: Delegation of President 
Kruger during the war of 1899- 
1902 — departure from Pretoria, 
316; Holland's, Queen of, offer 
of a warship, 319; journey to 
Europe, 320; proclamation by 
the Executive Eaad, 316 

Explosion of dynamite at Johan- 
nesburg, 19 February, 1896, 244 

Farrar, Mr, : Jameson Eaid, sig- 
nature of Johannesburg letter of 
appeal, 231; sentence for con- 
spiracy at Johannesburg and 
complicity in the Jameson Eaid, 
244 

Father of President Kruger, 3; 
Portuguese frontier delimitation 
commissioner in 1844, 13 

Federal Council, constitution of, 
for the two Eepublics, 262 

Federation of South Africa under 
the British flag: Messrs. Jou- 
bert and Kruger deputed to urge 
Cape Parliament to opposition, 
149, 158, 162 

Fick, Chief Commandant of Or- 
ange Free State: Basuto war- 
attacks on Malap Mountains 
and Katskatsberg, 96; Kruger 's, 
President, mission to Moshesh — 
General Fick serving as escort, 61 

Field Cornet, appointment of 
President Kruger as, 37 

Financial condition of the South 
African Eepublic in 1885, 179; 
gold-fields discovery, effect of, 
180 

Fischer, Mr. Abraham: Jameson 
Eaid, disposal of culprits— ad- 
vice to the commandants, 241; 
state secretary of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic— refusal of ap- 
pointment, 264; war of 1899- 
1902, intervention of foreign 
powers — member of deputation 
to Europe, 309 

Floods in the South African Ee- 
public in 1893, 216 

Foreign relations of the South 
African Eepublic : Kruger 's, 
President, speech in the Volks- 
raad, 369; (see also titles in- 
tervention and London Conven- 
tion) 



Foreigners (see Uitlanders) 

Forts in Chartered Company's ter- 
ritory built by Mr. Ehodes, 194 

Foster, Mr. B. : Connection with 
Adendorff trek, 206 

Poster, murder of, by Edgar in 
1898, 267 

Fouche, Field Cornet D.: OfScer 
who prevented Dr. Jameson 
from turning the Boer position 
near Krugersdorp, 237 

Fourie: Mission to the Orange 
Free State, 91; peace conference 
after Zwartkopje— delegate for 
Schoeman's party, 90 

France: Kruger 's. President, visit 
in 1877 — failure to obtain inter- 
vention of, 125; president's re- 
ception of Boer delegates in 
1884, 177; press expose of Eng- 
lish methods of warfare — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's thanks, 325; wel- 
come to President Kruger on his 
journey through France in 1900, 
321-325 

Franchise question : Uitlanders ' 
grievances — Bloemfontein Con- 
ference (see that title) ; British 
Government decision to formu- 
late their own proposals for a 
final settlement (25 September, 
1899), 291; Eeitz's, Mr., in- 
quiry as to the promised dis- 
patch, and Mr. Chamberlain's 
reply, 292; Steyn's, President, 
correspondence with Sir A. Mil- 
ner, 294, 303; British subjects 
refusing to take the field with 
the burghers in 1884 — President 
Kruger on, 377; Chamberlain's, 
Mr., Highbury speech — " The 
sands are running down in the 
glass," 284; commission, ap- 
pointment of, by the British 
Government — Mr. Chamberlain's 
dispatch (30 August, 1899), 
284; Eeitz's, Mr., reply, 286; 
conference between President 
Kruger and Sir A. Milner — Mr. 
Chamberlain's proposal (30 Au- 
gust, 1899), 285, 286; Eeitz's, 
Mr., reply, 288; Draft Law of 
1899, provisions of, 277; failure 
of negotiations, causes of —Pres- 
ident Steyn 's correspondence 



421 



INDEX 



with Sir A. Milner, 298; gold- 
fields representation in the 
Volksraad, proposed increase in, 
281; Great Britain's demands — 
'■'■ Devilish fraud " — President 
Kruger's protest against British 
Pharisaical hypocrisy, 395; Kru- 
ger's, President, speech in the 
Volksraad, 388; inadequacy of 
reforms — further demands by 
the Uitlanders' Council and the 
South African League, 284; in- 
tervention by Great Britain (see 
that title) ; joint commission 
for revision of law of 1899 — 
Mr. Chamberlain 's proposal 
(1 August, 1899), 279; ac- 
ceptance by Government of 
South African Eepublic (2 
September, 1899), 289; alter- 
native proposal by Government 
of South Africa, 281, 283, 290; 
Chamberlain's, Mr., reply of 
30th August— Mr. Chamberlain's 
contention that he had accepted 
proposal, 285, 286; lapsing of 
proposal— Mr. Eeitz's letter of 
2d September, 286; Eeitz's, Mr., 
reply of 12th August, 280; Lon- 
don Convention, violation of — 
charge against Mr. Chamberlain, 
279; Smuts 's, Mr., interviews 
vTith Mr. Greene, 280, 283; with- 
drawal of proposal by the Brit- 
ish Government — Greene's, Mr., 
letter and Mr. Eeitz's reply, 
289; Steyn's, President, dis- 
patch of 27th September, 294; 
-Elruger's, President, proposals 
— eifect on plans of Mr. Cham- 
berlain and Sir A. Milner, 270; 
Phillips's, Mr., statement that 
" We do not care a fig for the 
franchise," 232; Second Volks- 
raad, institution of, 197; bur- 
ghers' approval, 198; Kruger's, 
President, responsibility, 197, 
199; opposition to, 198; powers 
of Second Volksraad, 199; Uit- 
landers' dissatisfaction, 199; 
vote for, etc., conditions of ob- 
taining, 197, 198; seven years' 
franchise — retrospective fran- 
chise — Afrikander leaders' pro- 



posal, 278; Smuts 's, Mr., inter- 
view with Mr. Greene on 15th 
August, 1899, 280, 283; yielded 
by the Eepublic— President Kru- 
ger's speech in the Volksraad, 
388; Steyn's, President, media- 
tion—correspondence between 
Sir A. Milner and President 
Steyn, 293-303 ; negotiations — 
removal of British troops from 
borders of South African Eepub- 
lic stipulated for, 300; Uitland- 
ers' council, dissatisfaction of, 
279 ; Volksraad — new members 
— permission to speak their own 
language, Mr. Greene's letter of 
12th September, 1899, and Mr. 
Eeitz's reply, 289, 291; opening 
— announcement in the presi- 
dent's speech, 369; war of 1899- 
1902 forced on the Eepublic, 
franchise question used as a pre- 
text, 269, 270, 272 

Eraser, Mr., acting British agent 
in Pretoria: Eefusal to receive 
petition on Uitlander grievances, 
271 

Frere, Sir Bartle: Annexation of 
1877— deputation of protest 
against annexation, interview 
with Sir B. Frere, 130; Klein- 
fontein meetings — dishonest con- 
duct of Sir B. Frere in the mat- 
ter of the burghers' petition 
against annexation, 138, 145; re- 
ception at, 157; open letter to 
Messrs. Kruger and Joubert dis- 
tributed among burghers, 138; 
arrival in Cape Town, 118 ; Kru- 
ger and Joubert, Messrs., invita- 
tion to, during their mission to 
Cape Town, 145; invitation re- 
fused, 145; Zulu War of 1879 
—request to President Kruger 
to accompany expedition, 133; 
Kruger's, President, refusal, 
133 ; frontier commission — ap- 
pointment, etc., 173; Massouw 
declared independent, 179 

Gangrene, Boer remedy for, 34 
Gasibone, Chief : Diamond-fields 
discovered in 1870; British Gov- 
ernment contention that terri- 



422 



INDEX 



tory belonged to Montsioa 
and Gasibone, 105; expedition 
against — President Kruger as- 
sistant general— success of ex- 
pedition, etc., 64-66 

Gelderland: Dutch warship in 
which President Kruger jour- 
neyed to Europe, 319 

German emperor unable to receive 
President Ejruger owing to a 
hunting engagement, 326 

Germany : Enthusiastic reception 
of President Kruger, 325, 326; 
Kruger 's, President, visit in 
1877; failure to obtain interven- 
tion, 127; reception of Boer 
delegates in 1884, 177; veterin- 
ary congress at Baden-Baden — 
South African Eepublic repre- 
sentative. President Kruger 's 
announcement, 371 

Gold-fields of the South Afri- 
can Eepublic : Bewaarplaatsen, 
change in method of allotment 
of— Chief Justice of the Su- 
preme Court challenging valid- 
ity of the resolutions of the 
Volksraad, 254; dismissal of the 
Chief Justice, 257; Kruger 's. 
President, defence, 356; com- 
pany promoting of valueless 
property — precautionary mea- 
sures, President Kruger 's speech 
in the Volksraad (12th May, 
1898), 342; delvers commit- 
tee established, 182; depression 
among the poorer classes, relief 
measures; warning to the gold- 
field banks, etc.— President Kru- 
ger 's speech delivered at his in- 
auguration as president (12th 
May, 1898), 340; discovery of, 
179, 180 ; beneficial results, 180 ; 
South African War largely due 
to discovery, 120, 180; Johannes- 
burg, origin of, 182; population 
of the Witwatersrand, character 
of, 181; progress of mining in- 
dustry; value of gold extracted, 
etc., JPresident Kruger 's an 
nouncement in the Volksraad, 
373 ; representation in the Volks- 
raad — increased representation 
proposed, 281; Ehodes's, Mr., 



determination to secure, 195 j 
war of 1899-1902— gold-fields 
the first and principal cause of, 
180 

Goshenland: Foundation of, 170; 
incorporation with Cape Colony 
due to Mr. Ehodes, 192 

Government of the South African 
Eepublic: Charge of secret deal- 
ing vpith Eooigronders, 171; 
government resuming ofQ.ce, ap- 
pointment of triumvirate, etc., 
151; self-government offered by 
British Government — President 
Kruger 's definition of, 143 ; war 
of 1899-1902— transfer of the 
Government from Pretoria — Ma- 
chadodorp, 312; Nelsprmt, 314 

Great Britain: Eelations with the 
South African Eepublic (see ti- 
tles British Government, British 
policy, intervention, etc.) 

Great Trek of 1836, 6; education 
of children during the trek, 11, 
12; losses sustained by Boers, 
11 ; Moselikatse 's attack on Vaal 
and Ehenoster encampments, 7; 
resolutions enacted by emigrants 
— treatment of natives, etc., 6 

Greene, Mr. Conyngham: With- 
drawal from Pretoria on decla- 
ration of war, 306 

Gregorowski, Judge: Trial of the 
Johannesburg reformers by, 243 

Griqualand, "West: Diamond-fields 
discovered at Kimberley, 105 

Grobler, Johannes: Acting Presi- 
dent of the South African Ee- 
public during absence of Presi- 
dent Pretorius, 70 

Grobler: Peace conference after 
Zwartkopje — government dele- 
gate, 90 

Grobler, Piet: Consul to Loben- 
gula, appointment as, 190; mur- 
der by Khama's Kaffirs, 191; 
pension paid to widow, 192 

Hague, President Kruger at the, 
326, 327 

Hammond, Mr. J. Hays: Jameson 
Eaid, signature of Johannesburg 
letter of appeal, 231; sentence 
for conspiracy at Johannesburg 



423 



INDEX 



and complicity in the Jameson 
Eaid, 244 

Harris, Dr. Eutherford: Negotia- 
tions on behalf of Mr. Ehodes 
for extension of chartered com- 
pany's territory, 229 

Heidelberg : Franchise reform 
proposals — President Kruger's 
meeting, 270; gold-fields, dis- 
covery of, 179, 180; meeting 
during Civil War — President 
Kruger's meeting with the 
young Boer, who announced that 
Kruger had better not come, 83 

Herholdt and Hofmeyer, Messrs.: 
Franchise law simplification, 
mission to Pretoria, 278 

Hervormde Church: Eesolution of 
council, conferring equal rights 
on burghers of all evangelical 
churches, 76 ; state church of the 
South African Eepublic, 74; 
substitution of Dopper Church 
as state church — intention at- 
tributed to President Kruger by 
Sehoeman, 78; union with ^e- 
derduitsch-Gereformeerde Church 
in 1881, 207; abandonment of 
union — property dispute, 208 ; 
conference of 1891 — President 
Kruger's failure to compose 
quarrel, 208, 209 

Hicks-Beach, Sir M., and the Boer 
deputation of protest against 
annexation: Memorial, reply to, 
130; refusal to receive deputa- 
tion, 130 

Hilversum, President Kruger at, 
327, 328 

Hofmeyer, Jan: Swaziland con- 
vention, work in securing first 
convention, 205 

Hofmeyer and Herholdt, Messrs.: 
Franchise law simplification, 
mission to Pretoria, 278 

Hogge, Major W. S. (H. M. Spe- 
cial Commissioner) : Letter to 
Commandant General Pretorius 
requesting him to take over Or- 
ange Free State on behalf of the 
Boer emigrants, 55 

HoUand: Boer delegates of 1884, 
reception of, 177; Kruger's, 
President, visit in 1877 — failure 
to obtain intervention, 125; Kru- 



ger's, President, life in, 326- 
328; Queen of Holland and 
President Kruger — offer of war- 
ships for journey to Europe, 
319; reception of President Kru- 
ger, 326 

Home rule for Johannesburg: 
Chamberlain's, Mr. J., proposal, 
245; publication of the dispatch 
in the London press before it 
reached the Government of the 
South African Eepublic — pro- 
test, 245 

Hudson: Dispute with President 
Kruger, as to name of South 
African Eepublic, 164 

Hunting experiences of President 
Kruger, 17-34 

Illness of President Kruger, 327 

Immigration restriction: Presi- 
dent Kruger's views on, 168 

Importation of goods: Eegistra- 
tion fees for goods imported 
free — provisional agreement 
vrith the Orange Free State — 
President Kruger 's announce- 
ment in the Volksraad, 370 

Independence of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic: Paarde Kraal 
declaration, 151 ; Salisbury 's, 
Lord, reply to Boer demand dur- 
ing war of 1899-1902, 383, 392, 
393 

Independence, War of (1880- 
1881) : Ammunition, scarcity 
of, among Boers, 153; ammuni- 
tion taken from the English, 
162; armistice, English request 
for, 157; Boer generals serving 
in, 153; Boer losses, English ex- 
aggeration of, 162; Boer plan 
of operations, 152; Bronkhorst- 
spruit, battle of, 153; treachery, 
charge of, against Boers, 154; 
Heidelberg, occupation of, 152; 
KaflB.rs called out against Boers, 
153; Kiruger's, President, mis- 
sion to Magato's Kaffirs, 155; 
Majuba HiU, battle of, 155; 
number of Boer forces, 152; 
number of men engaged on 
either side, 162; Paarde Kraal 
mass-meeting — meeting forbid- 
den, participants proclaimed 



424 



INDEX 



relsels, 151; resolutions, 151; 
peace negotiations — Boer and 
British representatives, 158 ; 
British Colonial Secretary's in- 
structions, 158; Jorissen's, Dr., 
third proclamation drawn up by 
President Kruger's order, 160; 
Brand 's, President, opposition 
to publication, 160; Pretoria 
Convention (see that title) ; 
provisional protocol, signature 
of, by Messrs. Kruger and Jou- 
bert,162; terms of, 162; Wood's, 
Sir E., attempt to evade signa- 
ture, 160; Eoyal Commission — 
appointment and constitution, 

162, 163; difficulties in composi- 
tion of, 158, 159; South African 
Eepublie deprived of power of 
interference in native quarrels — 
Swaziland taken from South Af- 
rican Eepublie, 201; Potchef- 
stroom — first shot fired, 152 ; 
preparations for war, 146; 
taxes, refusal to pay— armed re- 
sistance to forced sale of Bezui- 
denhout's wagon, 149; territory 
claimed by Great Britain, 159, 

163, 164 

Independence, War of, in the Free 
State: A. W. J. Pretorius's 
command, 37 note 

Industrial Commission, appoint- 
ment of, 252; Government 
measures for carrying out sug- 
gestions, 254; report, 253 

Industrial resources, development 
of: President Kruger 's views, 
168 

Intervention by Great Britain in 
the internal affairs of the Ee- 
publie: Cape ministry's note — 
intervention unnecessary, 278, 
279; condition laid down in al- 
ternative proposal to Mr. J. 
Chamberlain's joint commission 
proposal on the franchise ques- 
tion, 281, 284; Chamberlain's, 
Mr., dispatch of 30th Au- 
gust, 1899, and Mr. Eeitz's re- 
ply, 285-288; independence of 
the Eepublie, endangered by 
suzerainty claim — Mr. Eeitz 's 
letter of 15th September, 1899, 
289, 290; MUner's, Sir A., tele- 



gram of 31st August, 1899, urg- 
ing prompt and decided action, 
286; need for intervention — Sir 
A. MUner's dispatch to Mr. 
J. Chamberlain, 272; Steyn's, 
President, dispatch of 27th 
September, 1899, 294; ultima- 
tum of 9th October, 1899— final 
protest by the Eepublie, 304, 
305; violation of London Con- 
vention of 1884 — charge against 
Mr. Chamberlain, 279 

Intervention of Foreign Powers: 
Annexation of 1877 — commis- 
sion of delegates empowered to 
appeal for, 122; failure to ob- 
tain intervention, 126; Kruger, 
President, a member of commis- 
sion, 122, 125; war of 1899- 
1902— deputation to Europe, 
309 

Isandlhwana, British defeat by 
Zulus at, 134 

Jameson, Dr.: Matabele, expedi- 
tion against, 195; raid (see 
Jameson Eaid) 

Jameson Eaid: Advance of the 
raiders — Dr. Jameson ignoring 
all requests to withdraw, 235, 
236 ; Chamberlain, Mr. J., charge 
of complicity against, 228, 230, 
248, 249; committee of inquiry 
— charge against the British 
Government of withholding tele- 
grams proving Mr. Chamber- 
lain's guilt, 230; telegrams 
cited in evidence of the charge, 
229, 230; deputation of reform- 
ers to Pretoria demanding per- 
mission for Dr. Jameson to enter 
Johannesburg, 236; excitement 
among the burghers — desire to 
shoot down the Johannesburg 
' ' den with aU the rebels in it, ' ' 
240; ignorance of the Transvaal 
authorities, 232; Johannesburg, 
disturbed condition of — arms 
and ammunition, concealment of, 
in the Simmer and Jack mine, 
228; committee to maintain 
order, appointment of, 236; dep- 
utations to President Kruger 
in support of the Government, 
235; flight cf thousands of in- 



425 



INDEX 



habitants, 234; mediation — Sir 
H. EoMnson's offer, 236, 239; 
Phillips's, Mr. Lionel, attack on 
the Government, 231; police con- 
fined to barracks in order to 
avoid a collision, 234; proclama- 
tions by President Kruger stat- 
ing that the conspirators consti- 
tuted only a small part of the 
population, 235, 243; reformers' 
letter of appeal — undated letter 
handed to Dr. Jameson to serve 
as an excuse for invasion, 231; 
unconditional surrender — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's terms, 239, 241, 
242; volunteer corps organized 
by the Eeform Committee, 234; 
work of the Transvaal National 
Union in raising and maintain- 
ing a ferment at Johannesburg, 
228; Kruger, President — charge 
of keeping a horse saddled ready 
for flight, 234 note; Krugers- 
dorp engagement, 237; procla- 
mation by Sir H. Eobinson call- 
ing upon Dr. Jameson and his 
force to withdraw across the 
frontier, 236; punishment of cul- 
prits— Kruger 's, President, pro- 
posal to hand over Jameson 
and his men to the British Gov- 
ernment, 241 ; Chamberlain 's, 
Mr. J., gratitude, 242; objec- 
tions by the commandants, 241; 
penalties inflicted, 242; reform 
leaders at Johannesburg — arrest 
and trial for conspiracy, 242, 
243; Ehodes, Colonel, sent to 
Johannesburg to represent Mr. 
Ehodes, 230; Ehodes 's, Mr., 
plans and intrigues, 228; strate- 
gic positions on the frontier — 
negotiations for extension of 
Chartered Company 's territory, 
229 
Jeppe (only printer in the South 
African Eepublic) : Steyn 's de- 
mand for surrender of, 72, 73 
Johannesburg: Dynamite explosion 
of 19th February, 1896, 244; 
franchise reform. President Kru- 
ger 's proposals, 270; home rule 
— Mr. Chamberlain's proposal, 
245; publication of the dispatch 
in the London press before it 



reached the Government of the 
South African Eepublic — pro- 
test, 245; Jameson Eaid (see 
that title) ; Jorissen, Dr., ap- 
pointed as special judge, 197; 
KJruger's, President, visit in 
1887, 182; Kruger 's, President, 
visit in 1888, 196; insult to 
President Kruger, 199; riot be- 
fore house where President Kru- 
ger was staying — flag of the 
Eepublic hauled down, 200; 
Loch's, Sir H., proposed visit, 
abandonment of, on President 
Kruger 's advice, 221; munici- 
pality — President Kruger 's pro- 
mise of, 196, 243; origin of, 
182; raDways (see railways); 
South African League — branch 
at Johannesburg, formation of, 
266, 267; meeting to protest 
against arrests for contraven- 
tion of the Pass Law — hostile 
demonstration, 267; petitions to 
the Queen on Uitlander griev- 
ances, 270, 271 

Jones, Policeman : Action in shoot- 
ing Edgar in attempting to ar- 
rest him for murder — Mr. Cham- 
berlain's misrepresentations, 26S 

Jooste's, Dr., letter in the Zuid 
AfriJcaan: Annexation opposed 
only by a handful of irrecon- 
cilables, 126; Kruger 's, Presi- 
dent, reply — suggestion of a 
pleMscUe rejected by British 
Government, 126 

Jorissen, Dr.: Annexation of the 
South African Eepublic, 1877— 
attitude as to, 126; commission 
appointed to discuss affairs with 
Sir T. Shepstone, member of, 
116; commission of delegates to 
Europe and America, member of, 
122, 125; Burgers 's. President, 
discovery of a useful servant to 
the state, 109; Burgers, Presi- 
dent, supported by, 117; dis- 
missal from state attorneyship 
— President Kruger 's protest, 
174; Independence, War of, 
peace negotiations of 1881 — 
Boer representative, 158; third 
proclamation drawn up at Presi- 
dent Kruger 's request, 160; 



426 



INDEX 

Brand's, President, opposition, Keate, Governor of Natal: Deci- 

160; special judge for Johan- sion as arbitrator in the dia- 

nesburg— appointment, 197 mond-fields dispute, 106 

Joubert, Christian: Church union Khama: Piet Grobler murdered 

of 1881, leader of seceders by Khama 's Kafirs, 191; pen- 

from, 207 sion paid to Grobler 's widow, 

Joubert, Commandant Frans: 192 

Battle of Bronkhorstspruit, Jou- Kimberley: Diamond-fields discov- 

bert's success, 154 ered in 1870, 105; rebellion of 

Joubert, Commandant: Secucuni mining population, 182 

war, retreat due to lack of re- Klerksdorp gold-fields, discovery 

inforcements. 111 of, 181 

Joubert, General: Adendorff Klopper, Christian: President of 

trek — opposition to President the South African Eepublic 

Kruger, 206; burgher volunteers Volksraad, 74 

in the Moshette-Montsioa war — Kock, Jan: Joint commission 

Joubert sent to recall, 170; at Potchefstroom — state church 

commandant general, election as, question, 78 

151; re-election in 1884, 179; Korannas (see Massomo, Chief) 

commissioners for the western Kosi Bay: Cession to Transvaal by 

border, appointment of, 171; Swaziland Agreement, 204 

death of, 309, 382; gold-fields Kotze, Chief Justice: Disputing 

discovery, reception of news, validity of resolutions of the 

180; Independence, War of — Volksraad, 254; dismissal of the 

Boer losses, extent of, 162; pro- Chief Justice, 257; Kruger 's, 

visional peace protocol, signa- President, defence, 356; Joris- 

ture of, 162; Massouw, expedi- sen, Dr., dismissed by, 174; 

tion against, 179; military presidency, candidate for, in 

capacity of, 154, 155; peace, 1893, 209 

maintenance of, in 1879— fail- Kraep, Jan: Secretary to Messrs. 

ure of mission to Natal, 136, Kruger and Pourie on their mis- 

137; support of President Kru- sion to the Orange Free State, 

ger, 135, 136; presidency of 91 

South African Eepublic— can- Kruger, Caspar Jan Hendrlk, 

didature in 1882, 167; Candida- father of President Kruger, 3; 

ture in 1888, 189; candidature Portuguese frontier delimitation 

in 1893, 209; second deputation commissioner, 1844, 13 

of protest against annexation, Kruger, Gert (uncle to President 

member of, 129; Shepstone's, Kruger), 3 

Sir T., attack on, 130; trium- Kruger, Mrs. (first wife): Death 

virate of 1880, member of, 151 of, 13 

Judges of the Supreme Court : Kruger, Mrs. (second wife) : 

Kruger 's. President, address on Death of, 328; separation from 

his election as president (12th the president on his departure 

May, 1898), 350 from Pretoria, 310 

Judicial functionaries and criti- Kruger, Nicholas (brother to Presi- 

cism: Law requiring a promise dent Kruger), 25 

not to assume the right of toet- Kruger, Piet (son of President 

sing the validity of the laws, 257 Kruger) : Member of mission to 

Magato's Kaffirs, 155 

Kaffir chiefs, expeditions against Kruger, Theunis (uncle to Presi- 

(see names of chiefs) dent Kjuger), 3, 21; hunting 

Kaffirs (see native question) experiences shared with Presi- 

Kampen: President Kruger 's visit, dent Kruger— panther-kiUing, 

328 29 

427 



INDEX 



Krugersdorp : Gold-fields, discov- 
ery of, 181; Jameson Eaid en- 
gagement at, 237 

" Kwaaie Vrouw ": President 
Kruger's reference to Queen 
Victoria, 259 

Language (see Dutch Language) 

Lanyon, Sir O. : Kleinfontein 
meeting, presence at, 138; suc- 
cession to Sir T. Shepstone— un- 
fitted for post, etc., 135 

Leonard, Mr. Charles: Jameson 
Eaid — signature of Johannes- 
burg letter of appeal, 231; Hit- 
landers' grievances — manifesto, 
232 

Leyds, Dr.: Envoy Extraordinary 
of the South African Eepublic 
in Europe, appointment, 264; 
Kjuger, President, bringing Dr. 
Leyds from Holland, 178; State 
Secretary of the South African 
Eepublic, election as, 189; re- 
election, 264; suzerainty ques- 
tion, reply of 16th April, 1898, 
250 ; Swaziland Agreement, 
draft proposals— Dr. Leyds 's 
denial that he had signed and 
approved draft deed, 204, 205; 
western bordei disturbances ; 
mission of Dr. Leyds, 173 

Liebenberg Vlei: Home of Kru- 
ger family, 9 

Lion-hunting: President Kruger's 
experiences, 18, 19 ; canine fidel- 
ity, 20; first lion-hunt, 17; roar 
produced by treading on body 
of lion shoitly after death, 19 

Livingstone: Arms repaired a.nd 
stored for Beehuana chief Se- 
cheli, 40 

Little Eree State: Permission 
granted to Transvaal to annex, 
204 

Lobengula: Matabele disturbances 
(see Matabeleland and Mashona- 
land). Eelations with South 
African Eepublic consul, re- 
quest for appointment of, 190; 
murder of Consul Piet Grobler 
by Khama's Kaffirs, 191; treaty 
placing country under protection 
of South African Eepublic, 190 

Loch, Sir Henry: Interview with 



President Kruger at Nerval's 
Point, 200; Pretoria visit— Brit- 
ish demonstration offensive to 
the burghers, 220; Volksraad 
resolution, 224; Swaziland ques- 
tion — conference at Blignauts- 
pont, 203; draft proposals, 204; 
Transvaal National IJnion — dep- 
utation; correctness of Sir H. 
Loch's public attitude— charge 
of treachery, 221, 222; Johan- 
nesburg proposed visit, abandon- 
ment of, on President Kruger's 
advice, 221 

Lombard, Stephanus: President of 
commission appointed to act in 
Schoeman affair, 74 

London Convention, 1884: Article 
4 — foreign relations of the Ee- 
public, interpretation of — dif- 
ference of opinion between Mr. 
Chamberlain and the South Af- 
rican Eepublic, 249; text of Ar- 
ticle 4, 249 note; Chamberlain's, 
Mr., invitation to President Kru- 
ger to visit England to confer 
on Transvaal matters — discus- 
sion of Article 4 of the London 
Convention precluded, 245; Kru- 
ger's, President, counter condi- 
tions, 246; elo£-ng the drifts to 
goods from over the seas — viola- 
tion of the convention, 227; dep- 
utation from South African 
Eepublic resulting in grant of 
London Convention, 174 ; England 
willing to receive, 174; members 
of deputation, 174; negotiations 
with Lord Derby, 175, 176 ; rail- 
way concession — foundation of 
the Netherlands South African 
Eailway Company, 177; railway 
loan, failure to raise, 177; re- 
ception on the Continent on re- 
turn journey, 177, 178; Eobin- 
son. Sir H., President Kruger's 
collision with, 176; franchise 
question— President Kruger's 
speech in the Volksraad, 376, 
377, 378; intervention of Great 
Britain in the internal affairs of 
the Eepublic (see that title). 
Natives, dealings of South Af- 
rican Eepublic with — conditions 
of convention, 171, 172; signa- 



428 



INDEX 

ture of convention, 176 ; Stella- appointment as chief in place of 

land and Goshenland difficulties Gasibone, etc., 65, 66 

— Transvaal Government unable Majuba Hill, battle of, 155; w^ar 

to intervene under the eonven- of 1899-1902 — " Eevenge for 

tion, 170, 171; suzerainty ques- Majuba HUl, " a cause of, 120 

tion (see that title); terms of Makapaan, Chief: Expedition to 

convention, 175, 176; violation avenge attack on women and 

of, by the South African Eepub- children traveling between Zout- 

lie — Mr. Chamberlain's conten- pansberg and Pretoria, 43, 44; 

tion— dispatch of 1897, 249 ; end of resistance — KafSjs 

dispatch of 27th July, 1899, starved into surrender, etc., 

279 47 

Lorenzo Marques: Detention of Makapaanspoort : Kruger's, Presi- 
President Kruger at the Portu- dent, visit to KaflSr chiefs in 
guese governor's house on the 1868, 101; Maehem, Chief, sub- 
way to Europe in 1900, 318 dued by President Kruger, 100- 

Lorenzo Marques to Pretoria Eail- 102; capture of Kafl&r women, 

way (see Delagoa Bay Eailway) 101; restoration in considera- 

Lottering (Kaffir girl) : Attempt tion of Maehem 's good be- 
to prevent Grobler's murder, havior, 101 
191 Makatese tribes: Submission to 

Lonbet, President: Eeception of Zulu chief, Moselikatse, 7 

President KJruger in 1900, 324 Malan, Commandant: Conditions 

Louis Trichardt, village to be so of Dr. Jameson's surrender, 

called to commemorate the es- 237, 238 

pedition against the rebellious Malan, Jacob: Command of Aap- 

tribe of Eamapulaan — Presi- jes Eiver post in Civil War, 77 

dent Kruger 's announcement in Malapoch, expedition against: 

the Volksraad, 372 British subjects' efforts to es- 
cape military service, 218, 219, 
377 

Machado, Governor, kindness of, Malmanie gold-fields, discovery of, 

during President Kruger 's de- 181 

tention at Delagoa Bay in 1900, Mamagali, Chief: Trial and pun- 

318 ishment for false information 

Machadodorp: War of 1899-1902, leading to Potgieter's attack on 

transfer of the Government Strijdpoort, 11 

from Pretoria to Machadodorp, Mampur — Murder of Chief Seeu- 

312 cuni: Expedition to punish 

Maehem, Chief: Eaids in Maka- Mampur, 169 

paanspoort district. President Mankoroane, Kaffir chief: Mont- 

Kruger's successful expedition, sioa, assistance to, in his war 

etc., 100-102 with Moshette— offer to English 

Magato, Chief: Aid given to volunteers, 170 

English in War of Independence Mansvelt, Prof., education laws of 

— President Kruger 's mission to 1882 drafted by, 216 note 

Magato, 155; escape from Mose- Mapela, Chief: Kruger, President, 

likatse, 10 ; President Kruger in- "fetching Mapela down from 

troduced to Moshesh by Magato, his mountain," 62; Moshesh, 

61 connection with, 62; Potgieter, 

Mahura, Chief: Diamond-fields Herman, murder of, 42, 43; ex- 
dispute — Mahura included with peditions to avenge murder — 
Chiefs Waterboer and Montsioa President Kruger assistant gen- 
in arbitration, 106 ; Gasibone es- eral, 44, 47-49 ; trial, 62 note 
pedition, action in— submission, Mapoch, Chief, protection of Mam- 

429 



INDEX 



pur, Secucuni's murderer: Ex- 
pedition against Mapoch, 169 

Maraba's town: Expedition to re- 
cover stolen cattle, commanded 
by President Kruger, 48 

Marabastad: Chief settlement in 
Zoutpansberg district, 100 

Marias, Commandant Jan, officer 
of Schoeman's party induced to 
accompany President Kruger to 
Pretoria, 83 

Mare : Boer representative in peace 
negotiations of 1881, 158 

Marriage: Civil marriage regarded 
as natural rite by the Boers, 
13 note 

Marriage of President Kruger: 
Pirst marriage in 1842 (Miss 
Maria du Plessis), 12, 13; sec- 
ond marriage (Miss G. S. F, W. 
du Plessis), 14 

Marseilles: Welcome of President 
Kruger on arrival in 1900, 322, 
323 

Mashonaland: Mr. Ehodes's in- 
trigues (see Matabeleland and 
Mashonaland) 

Massouw : Moshette — Montsioa 
war, share in — offer of land to 
white volunteers, 169, 170; de- 
feat of opponents, 170; revolt 
in 1885— success of Boer expe- 
dition— Massouw is kUled, etc., 
179 

Matabele disturbances: Boer en- 
campments, Matabele attack on, 
during Great Trek, 6; protec- 
tion of women and children, 
South African Eepublic offer of 
assistance to the British Gov- 
ernment, 233; Zeerust, defeat of 
Matabele by Boers, 8 

Matabeleland and Mashonaland : 
Cecil Ehodes's intrigues to avert 
ascendancy of South African 
Eepublic, 190-192 ; annexation 
of territory, 194; charter grant- 
ing right to certain monopolies 
and independent action, means 
used to obtain, etc., 193, 194; 
Chartered Company, formation 
of, 194; concession obtained 
from Lobengula, 193; gold, 
failure to discover, 195; Irish 
faction in British Parliament, 



attempt to unite, 194; massacre 
of Mashonas by Lobengula, pun- 
ishment of — death of Loben- 
gula, 195; Matabeleland and 
Mashonaland, intrigues to avert 
ascendancy of South African 
Eepublic— murder of Grobler 
due to Mr. Ehodes, etc., 191; 
Eobinson, Sir H., treaty with 
Lobengula, 193 

Meyer, Lucas: Election as presi- 
dent of " New Eepublic," 184 

Menitjes: Delegates for Schoe- 
man's party at the peace con- 
ference after Zwartkopje, 90 

Methuen, Lord, Capture of, by 
De la Eey: President Kruger 's 
desire for Lord Methuen 's re- 
lease, 328, 329 

Military service: Exemption of 
persons not in possession of full 
burgher rights on payment of a 
certain sum of money, 220; 
Malapoch expedition, efforts of 
British subjects to escape mili- 
tary service, 218, 219, 377 

Milner, Sir A.: Anti-British move- 
ment among the Afrikander 
population, alleged, 271; auto- 
cratic character of, 257; gov- 
ernor of Cape Colony and High 
Commissioner for South Africa, 
appointment in 1897, 257; par- 
tisanship, charge of, 269; policy 
— ' ' The power of Afrikander dom 
must be broken," 258; Swazi- 
land, Bunu question — interfer- 
ence of Sir A. Milner, 265, 266; 
Uitlander grievances — confer- 
ence with President Kruger at 
Bloemfontein, 31st May, 1899— 
unyielding attitude of Sir A. 
Milner, 273; intervention, need 
for— dispatch to Mr. Chamber- 
lain, 272, 286 

Mining committee established, 182 

Mining industry: Beivaarplaatsen, 
change in method of allotment 
—Chief Justice of Supreme 
Court challenging validity of 
Volksraad 's resolutions, 254 ; 
dismissal of chief justice, 257; 
Kruger 's, President, defence, 
356; company promoting on 
valueless property— preeaution- 



430 



INDEX 



ary measures, President Kru- 
ger's speech in the Volksraad 
(12th May, 1898), 342; Delvers 
Committee established, 182; de- 
pression among the poorer 
classes — relief measures. Presi- 
dent Elruger's statement (12th 
May, 1898), 340; Industrial 
Commission, appointment of, 
252; Government measures for 
carrying out suggestions, 253, 
254; report, 253; progress in— 
value in gold extracted— Presi- 
dent Kruger's announcement in 
the Volksraad, 373 

Mission of President Kruger: 
Early prophecy, 3 

Missionaries: Boer attitude 
towards, 40, 41 

Mobilo, Chief: Evidence in the 
diamond-fields arbitration, 106 

Montsioa, Chief: Appeal for pro- 
tection to South African Eepub- 
lic, 171; proclamation by South 
African Eepublic of protector- 
ate over Chiefs Moshette and 
Montsioa, 171, 172; British 
Government disallowing proc- 
lamation — proclamation recalled, 
172; diamond-fields discovered 
in 1870— British Government 
contention that territory be- 
longed to Montsioa and Gasi- 
bone, 105, 106; expedition 
against, in 1853 — President Kru- 
ger's action, etc., 50-52; Mo- 
shette, war with, 170; suzerainty 
of Great Britain over Montsioa 's 
territory declared, 172, 173 

Moselele, Chief: Murders commit- 
ted by, in South African Eepub- 
lic, 38 

Moselikatse, Chief: Friendly rela- 
tions vdth South African Eepub- 
lic, 190; Great Trek of 1836— 
attack on Boer encampments, 7; 
defeat by Boers at Zeerust, 8; 
Potgieter's expedition of 1839, 
failure of, 9; raids of — expedi- 
tion against, 20; tyranny of, 7, 
107 

Moselikatse Pass: Potgieter's at- 
tack on, in 1840, 10 

Moshesh, Chief: Basuto War of 
1865 (see that title). Gift of 



saddle-horse to President Kru- 
ger, 63; Orange Free State, 
troubles with, 59, 60; Kruger's, 
President, success in negotiating 
< peace, 61-63; polygamy, views 
on, 62 

Moshette, Chief: Protectorate pr.- 
claimed by South African Ee- 
public, 171, 172; proclamation 
disallowed by Great Britain and 
recalled, 172; war with Mont- 
sioa— offer of land to English 
and Boer volunteers, 169, 170; 
defeat of opponents, 170; Stel- 
laland and Goshenland founded 
by white volunteers, 170; Trans- 
vaal proclamation forbidding 
burghers to volunteer, 170; vol- 
unteers' refusal to obey, 170 

Mother of President Kruger, 3 

Name of the South African Ee- 
public: Name Transvaal State 
retained under Pretoria Conven- 
tion, 164; Kruger's, President, 
persistence in use of name South 
African Eepublic, 164; restora- 
tion of name South African Ee- 
public by London Convention, 
164 

Natal: Boer attempt to treat for 
acquisition of land, failure of, 
9; railway communication with 
Johannesburg, schemes for — 
Kruger's, President, rejection 
of, 182-185; scheme agreed to 
by President Kruger at first 
Swaziland Convention, 205 

National Union (see titles Trans- 
vaal National "Union and Eeform 
Committee) 

Native chiefs: Arms, smuggling 
of — Livingstone 's breach of 
Sand Eiver Convention, 40, 41; 
expeditions against (see names 
of chiefs). Independence, War 
of — aid given to English by Ma- 
gato, 155; Kaffirs called out 
against Boers, 153; raids into 
Cape Colony, 3; royal commis- 
sion of 1881 — South African Ee- 
public deprived of power of in- 
terference in native quarrels, 
170 ; Swaziland Convention — 
South African Eepublic debarred 



431 



INDEX 



from treating witli natives in 
North, and North-West by first 
convention, 205 

Native question: Arms for the na- 
tives—Livingstone's breach of 
Sand Eiver Convention, 39, 40; 
Boer treatment of natives — chil- 
dren captured in warfare, dis- 
posal of, 47, 101; Great Trek of 
1836— resolutions, etc., 6; prin- 
ciple followed in dealing with 
native tribes, 40; cannibalism, 
evidences discovered by Presi- 
dent Kruger during expedition 
to avenge Potgieter's murder, 
47; Kruger 's, President, opin- 
ions on— speeches of 1882 and 
1888, 41 note, 168. Labor: Dif- 
ficulties in dealing with Kafl&r 
servants, 14; industrial commis- 
sion, suggestions and Govern- 
ment measures, 253, 254; politi- 
cal nature of question — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's attitude towards 
the natives, 41 note 

Native territories (see their 
names) 

Naturalization laws of the South 
African Eepublic, 197, 198; 
Bloemfontein Conference propo- 
sals, 272, 273 

Nederduitsch- G ereformeerde 

Church: Union with Hervormde 
Church, 207 

Nelspruit, transfer of the Govern- 
ment of the South African Ee- 
public during the war of 1899- 
1902, 314 

Netherlands South African Eail- 
way Company: Foundation of, 
177; repayment of loan — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's announcement in 
the Volksi-aad, 372 

" New Eepublic," origin of — in- 
corporation with South African 
Eepublic, 184 

Niekerk, G. T. van, administrator 
of Stellaland, 170 

Nigel gold-fields, discovery of, 180 

Nyhotf, secretary to President 
KJruger — sleeping through Mo- 
shesh's night attack, 96 



Ohrigstad in Lydenburg district, 
foundation of, 14 



Orange Free State: Alliances with 
the South African Eepublic 
(see alliances). Annexation 
by Great Britain — President 
Steyn's proclamation, 409; an- 
nexation by Great Britain of 
South African Eepublic, resolu- 
tion by Free State Volksraad in 
favor of repeal, 139; barter of 
territory to Boer emigrants of 
1836, 6; Basuto War of 1865 
(see that title). Boundary be- 
tween South African EepubKc 
and Orange Free State — Presi- 
dent Kruger appointed to repre- 
sent South African Eepublic in 
deciding, 85; Civil War with the 
South African Eepublic (see 
Civil War). Constitution of, 
making as similar as possible to 
that of South African Eepublic 
— President Kruger 's announce- 
ment in the Volksraad, 369 ; Gasi- 
bone expedition, share in, 64, 65 ; 
loan concluded with the South 
African Eepublic — President 
Steyn's announcement, 383; Mo- 
shesh's raids— President Kru- 
ger 's successful mediation, 61- 
63 ; Moghette— Montsioa War, 
volunteers from Orange Free 
State for, 170; presidency (see 
that title) ; Pretorius, M. W.— 
claims on Orange Free State, 
compromise effected with South 
African Eepublic, 58, 59; elec- 
tion as president, 69; visit in 
1860, 69; registration fees for 
goods imported free into the 
South African Eepublic, pro- 
visional agreement— President 
Kruger 's announcement in the 
Volksraad, 370 ; Steyn, President 
(see Steyn) ; transfer by Great 
Britain to Commandant General 
Pretorius and the Boer emi- 
grants, 56; Volksraad, opening 
speech by President Steyn, 381; 
war between Great Britain, 
South African Eepublic, and 
Orange Free State (see that ti- 
tle) ; War of Independence, A. 
W. J. Pretorius 's command in, 
37 note 

Owen, C. M. (H. M. Special Com- 



432 



INDEX 



missioner) : Letter to Command- 
ant General Pretorius requesting 
Mm to take over Orange Free 
State on behalf of the Boer emi- 
grants, 56 

Paarde Kraal Meeting: Declara- 
tion of independence, 151 

Panther-hunting : President Kru- 
ger's experience, 29 

Parents of President Kruger, 3 

Paris: Exhibition of 1900— educa- 
tional distinctions conferred on 
the South African Eepublic, 
217; international exhibition of 
1878— President Kruger 's visit, 
132; welcome accorded to Presi- 
dent Kruger in 1900, 324 

Parker, President of English Min- 
ing Eepublic, at the diamond- 
fields threatening war against 
Pretorius, 105 

Peace: Termination of the war 
(see war between Great Britain, 
South African Eepublic, and Or- 
ange Free State) 

Peace conference after Zwart- 
kopje: Constitutions and deci- 
sions of, 90, 91 

Phillips, Mr. Lionel: Attack on 
the Government, speech at open- 
ing of Chamber of Mines new 
buildings, 231; franchise — Mr, 
Phillips's statement that " We 
do not care a fig for the fran- 
chise," 232; Jameson Eaid, sig- 
nature of Johannesburg letter of 
appeal, 231; sentence for con- 
spiracy at Johannesburg and 
complicity in the Jameson Eaid, 
244 

Pittius, Gey van, administration of 
Goshenland, 170 

Plague: Bubonic plague confer- 
ence — President Kruger 's an- 
nouncement in the Volksraad, 
370 
Plessis, Louw du: Serving the 
guns in battle against Seeheli, 
39 
Plessis, Miss Gezina Suzanna 
Frederika WUhelmina du: Mar- 
riage with President Kruger, 14 ; 
separation from husband and 
death, 310, 328 



Plessis, Miss Maria du: Marriage 
with President Kruger, 12, 13; 
death, 13 

Population : Number of male white 
population of South African 
Eepublic, 129 

Portugal, attitude of, during the 
war of 1899-1902: President 
Kruger 's detention at Delagoa 
Bay, 318 

Portuguese possessions in South 
African frontier: Commissions 
of 1844 to determine, 13 

Postma, Dr.: Founder of Christ e- 
UjJc-Gereformeerde Church, 75 

Potchef stroom : Wedding of Presi- 
dent Kruger, 13 

Potgieter, Andries (son of Her- 
man) : Murder by Chief Ma- 
pela, 43 

Potgieter, General Piet: Command 
in expedition to avenge murder 
of Herman Potgieter, 44; death 
— rescue of body by President 
Kruger, 46 

Potgieter, Hendrik: Commandant 
and leader of the Great Trek 
of 1836-37; election as com- 
mandant for life, 37 note; ex- 
pedition of 1839 against Mose- 
likatse — failure of, 9; Kruger, 
President, taking part in, 9, 10; 
Matabele, pursuit and defeat of, 
at Zeerust, 8; Moselikatse Pass 
— storming of Kaffir town in 
1840, 10; Strijdpoort— attack 
on Eooi Kaffirs due to false in- 
formation, 11 

Potgieter, Herman: Murder by 
Chief Mapela, 42, 43; expedi- 
tion to avenge — President Kru- 
ger 's exploits, 45, 46 

Pott, Consul-General : President 
Kruger 's visit on his way to 
Europe, 318 

Presidency of the Orange Free 
State: BoshofE, President, re- 
tirement of, 69; Pretorius, M. 
W., election of, 69 ; Eeitz, F. W., 
election of, 195, 196; Steyn, 
Judge M. T., election of, 258 
Presidency of the South African 
Eepublic : Acting president 
during President Kruger 's ab- 
sence in Europe — appointment of 



28 



433 



INDEX 



General Sehalk Burger, 316; 
ballot— first election under the 
new law, 1897, 258; Burgers, 
Thomas Francois, election of, 
108; candidates in 1893, 209; 
election of 1893— violence of 
electoral struggle, 209; Grob- 
ler, Johannes — acting presi- 
dent during absence of Preto- 
rius, 70; Joubert, General, candi- 
datures, 167, 189, 209; Kruger, 
President— acting as president 
after the annexation of 1877, 
122; candidature in 1882, 167; 
first candidature, 114; first 
presidency, 168; expiration, 185; 
fourth presidency, 1898, 263; 
speech on installation, 263, 264 
note; inauguration — speeches 
(12th May, 1898)— Kruger 's. 
President, speech, 338; re- 
quested to become a candidate, 
108; second presidency, 1888, 
189; third presidency, 1893- 
1898, 213; protest by Joubert 
party, 213 

Pretoria: Kruger, President, de- 
parture of, 316; Loch's, Sir H., 
visit ; British demonstrations 
offensive to the burghers, 220; 
Volksraad resolution, 219; occu- 
pation by Lord Eoberts in June, 
1900, 312; railway to Lorenzo 
Marques (see Delagoa Bay Eail- 
way) ; Swaziland Convention — 
conference between President 
Kruger and Sir H. Loch, 222 

Pretoria Convention of 1881: Dis- 
satisfaction among burghers- 
convention accepted with res- 
ervation, 163; Kruger 's. Presi- 
dent, vain appeal to Gladstone, 
163; name " Transvaal State," 
retention of, 163, 164; suze- 
rainty clause, opposition to, 163 

Pretorius: Murder by Basutos, 95 

Pretorius, Commandant General A. 
W. J.: Death of, 55; Indepen- 
dence, War of, command in — 
election as commandant general 
of Potchefstroom and Eusten- 
burg districts, 37 note; Mont- 
sioa. Chief, expedition against, 
50; Potgieter's, Herman, mur- 
der, avenging expedition com- 



manded by, 42, 44; Sand Eiver 
Convention, 37 

Pretorius, M. W. : Election in 
1858, 56, 69; resignation of, 70, 
107; Eobinson's candidature 
supported by President Kruger, 
108; Yolksraad resolution that 
state president should hold no 
other oflS.ce, 70 

Pretorius, President: Annexation 
— election as chairman of Pleb- 
iscite Committee, 127, 128; ar- 
rest on charge of high treason, 
142; liberation of Pretorius by 
force — attempt prevented by 
Kruger and Pretorius, 142; re- 
lease on bail, 143; Civil War — 
joint commission — Pretorius 
serving for Sehoeman's party 
on second joint commission, 81; 
opposition commission, member 
of, 91; peace conference after 
Zwartkopje— delegate for Sehoe- 
man's party, 90; commandant 
general of the South African 
EepubUc, appointment as, 56; 
diamond-fields dispute, agree- 
ment to arbitration in — Presi- 
dent Kruger 's disapproval, 106; 
Gasibone, expedition against — 
appointment of President Kru- 
ger as assistant general, 64; 
Kruger 's. President, mediation 
between Orange Pree State and 
Moshesh, Pretorius sharing in, 
59, 60; Orange Pree State- 
claims to government of, 56, 57; 
Boshoff's, President, armed re- 
sistance, 57; compromise ef- 
fected, 58; Kruger 's. President, 
mediation, 57; election of Preto- 
rius as president, 69; resignation 
of presidency, 88; peace, main- 
tenance of, in 1879— support of 
President Kruger, 136; peace 
negotiations of 1881, Boer rep- 
resentative in, 158; presidency 
of South African Eepublic — 
election in 1858, 56, 69; resigna- 
tion, 70, 107; in consequence of 
upshot of diamond-fields dispute, 
107, 108; president of Govern- 
ment of South African Eepublic, 
appointment as, 56; proclama- 
tion of the British Government 



434. 



INDEX 



offering self-government to the 
South African Eepublic — read- 
ing at Nauwpoort, etc., 143; re- 
turn from Orange Free State, 
73; Secucuni War — Kruger's, 
President, recommendation of 
Pretorius to serve as fighting 
general, 111; triumvirate of 
1880, member of, 151; Zoutpans- 
berg expedition — failure to sup- 
ply President Kruger with am- 
munition, 99 

Prinsloo: Peace conference after 
Zwartkopje — Government dele- 
gate, 90 

Proes, state attorney of South Af- 
rican Eepublic, 73 

Punishment and chastisement, dis- 
tinction between, 59 

Queen Victoria : ' ' Kwaaie vrouw, ' ' 
President Kruger's jest, 259 

Eailways: Extension of railways. 
President Kruger's views on, 
168; Johannesburg, access to, by 
rail — President Kruger refusing 
requests of Cape Colony and 
Natal till Delagoa Eailway 
should be finished, 182-184; in- 
dignation in Cape Colony, 185; 
Kosi Bay and strip of land 
ceded to South African Eepub- 
lic for railway construction, 204; 
Natal scheme for railway to Jo- 
hannesburg — Kruger's, Presi- 
dent, acceptance of scheme, 203; 
Swaziland Convention scheme 
agreed to, 205; Orange Free 
State railways — President Kru- 
ger's proposals, 184; acceptance 
of, 196; profits division pro- 
posal (see tariff war) ; tariff, 
reduction of — Industrial Com- 
mission suggestions and Govern- 
ment measures, 253 

Eamapulaan native tribe revolt, ex- 
pedition against : President 
Kruger's announcement in the 
Yolksraad, 372 

Eed Cross abuses, alleged, during 
the war of 1899-1902 (see War) 

Eeform Committee: Arrest and 
trial of reform leaders in Jan- 
uary, 1896, 243; deputation to 



Pretoria to demand permission 
for Dr. Jameson to enter Jo- 
hannesburg, 236; name adopted 
by the Transvaal National 
Union, 234; Ehodes, Colonel, 
the only man who understood 
his business, 234. (See also 
Transvaal National Union) 

Eeitz, P. W.: Character of, 196; 
franchise question, stages of 
(see title franchise question) ; 
president of Orange Free State, 
election as, 195, 196; state 
secretary of the South African 
Eepublic, election as, 264 

Eeligious advancements of South 
African Eepublic : President 
Kjuger's views on, 168 

Eensburg, Adrian van: Hunting 
experiences shared with Presi- 
dent Kruger— elephant hunting, 
27, 29 

Eensburg, President van: Civil 
War — joint commission at Pot- 
chef stroom, proposals, 78; spe- 
cial court established by joint 
commission summoned by presi- 
dent, 82; nomination as acting 
state president of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic, 74 

Eetief, Piet, murder of, 9 

Ehenoster encampment : Mose- 
likatse's attack, 7 

Ehinoceros hunting : President 
Kruger's experiences — adventure 
with cow witharnoster, 22, 25; 
thumb blown off by explosion of 
rifle, 31 

Ehodes, Cecil: Adendorff trek, 
opposition to, 206; character, 
political creed, etc., 191-195 j 
closing the drifts — retaliatory ac- 
tion as premier of Cape Colony, 
227, 228; delvers committee, 
member of, 182; financial influ- 
ence, 192; gold-fields of South 
African Eepublic, determination 
to secure, 195; imperialistic 
dreams, 190; Jameson Eaid (see 
that title) ; Kruger 's. President, 
attempt to win over, by offer 
of Delagoa Bay, 192 note; po- 
litical career in Cape Colony, 
192; South African Eepublic 
western frontier question, Mr. 



435 



INDEX 

Rkodes's mission, 171, 173; Eooigrond, capital of Goshenland, 

Stellaland and Goshenland — in- 171 

corporation with Cape Colony Eoos, Tielman : President Kruger 's 

due to Cecil Ehodes, 192; Swazi- teacher, 12 

land question — first convention, Eooyen, Van: Assistance rendered 
influence in, 206; presence at to President Kruger during bat- 
conference, 203 tie against Secheli, 39 

Ehodes, Colonel, and the Jameson Eotterdam: President Kruger 's 

Eaid: Only man among the visit, 327 

reformers who understood his Eowlands, Colonel: Command of 

business, 234; representative of Secucuni expedition, 132 

Cecil Ehodes in Johannesburg, Eoyal commission of 1881 (see in- 

230; sentence for conspiracy at dependence, war of, peace nego- 

Johannesburg and complicity in tiations) 

the Jameson Eaid, 244; signa- Eustenburg: President Kxuger's 

ture of Johannesburg letter of meeting with reference to fran- 

appeal, 231 chise reform, 270 

Eing presented to Mr. Kruger by 
English friend of the Boers, 

131 Salisbury, Marquis of, and the 

Eoberts, Field-Marshal Earl: "War of 1899-1902: Eeply to 

Bronkhorstspruit, battle of — Ee- President Kruger 's application 

vival of charge of treachery for peace negotiations — Presi- 

against the Boers, 154; war of dent Kruger 's comments, 383, 

1899-1902 (see war) 392, 393 ; statement that the Ee- 

Eobertse, Frans, wounded by first publics would not be allowed to 

shot fired in War of Indepen- retain a shred of independence, 

dence, 152 310 

Eobinson : Candidate for Presi- Sambaanland : Annexation by Eng- 

dency supported by President land, protest of the Transvaal, 

Kruger, 108 224; incorporation with the 

Eobinson, Sir H. (High Commis- Transvaal proposed, 203 

sioner) : Johannesburg, disturbed Sand Eiver Convention : Annexa- 

state of— offer of mediation, tion of 1877, a violation of, 119; 

236, 239; Kruger 's, Presi- Kruger, President, accompany- 

dent, esteem for, 176; London ing Pretorius; Livingstone's 

Convention negotiations — colli- breach of —storing and repair- 

sion with President Kruger, 176 ; ing arms for natives, 40 

Matabele disturbances— reply to Scheveningen : President Kruger 's 

South African Eepublic's offer visit to Mr, Wolmarans, 328 

of assistance, 233; treaty with Schoeman, Commandant General: 

Lobengula, 193 ; suzerainty ques- Agreement to assist President 

tion, opinion on, 250 ; Swaziland, Boshoff, 57 ; Mapela expedition 

opinion as to annexation of Swa- of 1858, command of, 48 ; vio- 

zHand by South African Eepub- lation of the constitution of the 

lie, 201, 202; War of Indepen- South African Eepublic (see 

dence, peace negotiations, royal Civil War) 

commission— Sir H. Eobinson a Schoeman, Marthinus: Escorting 

member of, 162, 163 President Kruger on his mission 

Eoets, field-cornet of Heidelberg to Moshesh, 60 

district— Friendly reception of Schoemansdaal, village of, aban- 

President Kruger, 82 doned owing to KafSr attacks, 

Eooi Kaffirs of Strijdpoort: Pot- 99 

gieter's attack on, due to false Scholtz, Chief Commandant: Com- 

information, 11 mand in Secheli expedition of 

436 



INDEX 



1849, 38; confiscation of Living- 
stone's arsenal, 40 

Schoolmasters and mistresses: 
President Kruger's address on 
his election (12th May, 1898), 
366 

Schoonkloof Farm : President Kru- 
ger's accident, 98 

Schutte, Commandant: Expedition 
against Montsioa, endeavor to 
dissuade Kruger from attacking, 
51 

Secheli Expedition of 1849: Kru- 
ger, President, Deputy Com- 
mandant—share in fighting, etc., 
37, 40; Secheli 's accusation 
against President Kruger, 39 

Second Volksraad (see franchise 
question) 

Secucuni, Chief: British claim to 
territory of — expedition under 
Colonel Eowlands, 132; mur- 
dered by Mampur, 169; Wolse- 
ley's. Sir Gr., subjection of. 
140 

Secucuni war of 1876: Annexation 
©f South African Eepublic by 
Great Britain, failure of Secu- 
cuni war a pretext for, 114, 
116; Burgers 's. President, de- 
termination to accompany the 
commando— President Kruger's 
refusal to command, 110; causes 
of, 110; failure of main at- 
tack, 111; fighting generals rec- 
ommended by President Kruger, 
111; Magali, Chief, successful 
attack on, 111 ; peace, Secucuni 's 
petition for, 112, 116; tax 
levied by President Burgers for 
maintenance of outposts — burgh- 
ers refusing to pay tax, 113; 
Burgers 's, President, attempt to 
exclude non-paying burghers 
from the Volksraad, 117; Kru- 
gers, President, opposition to tax 
as illegal, 113 

Secucuni 's town: President Kru- 
ger's thumb blown off by ex- 
plosion of rifle, 31 

Self-government offered to South 
African Eepublic by British 
Government, President Kruger's 
definition of, 143 

Shaw, Miss Flora: Telegraphic 



correspondence with Mr. Ehodes, 
shovring Mr. Chamberlain 's 
knowledge of the Jameson Eaid, 
229, 230 

Shepstone, Offy: Adviser to King 
of Swaziland, appointment, 202 

Shepstone, Sir TheophUus: An- 
nexation of the South African 
Eepublic in 1877 — mission to 
Pretoria, etc. (see annexation) ; 
Kruger 's, President, attitude on 
the annexation question, mis- 
statement as to, 126; presence 
in Pretoria during the Secucuni 
war-tax dispute, 113; reply to 
petition against annexation — 
attack on Messrs. Kruger and 
Joubert, 130; Zulu war of 1879 
— request to President Kruger 
for assistance, 134 

Simmer and Jack mine: Arms 
and ammunition concealed in, at 
the time of the Jameson Eaid, 
229 

Sister republic (see Orange Free 
State) 

Slaves: Emancipation by the Eng- 
lish prior to trek of 1835, method 
of payment of compensation, 4 

Smit, General : Independence, War 
of — peace negotiations — pro- 
posal to renew hostilities, 159; 
services in, 155; London Con- 
vention deputation, member of, 
174 

Smit, Nicholas: Fighting general 
in the Secucuni war, appoint- 
ment on President Kruger's 
recommendation. 111 

Smith, Jimmy: Presentation of 
American children's address to 
President Kruger, 311 

Smuts, Mr. J. C. : Character 
sketch, 264; state attorney of 
the South African Eepublic, ap- 
pointment, 264 

Snyman, Commandant General : 
Civil War — order to surround 
Schoeman, etc., 77; nomination 
as commandant general of the 
South African Eepublic, 74 

South African Committee: Charge 
against the British Government 
of keeping back telegrams which 
proved Mr. Chamberlain's know- 



437 



INDEX 



ledge of the Jameson Eaid, 229, 
247, 248 

South African League: Franchise 
question — alleged insufficiency of 
reforms, further demands, 284; 
Johannesburg branch — forma- 
tion of, 266, 267; meeting to 
protest against arrests for con- 
travention of the Pass Law — 
hostile demonstration, 267; peti- 
tions to the Queen on Uitlander 
grievances, 270, 271 

Spain, King of: Eeception of 
Boer delegates in 1884, 177 

Speeches by President Kruger in 
the Volksraad (12th May, 1898), 
338 (1st May, 1899), 368; (2d 
October, 1899), 376, 379; (7th 
May, 1900), 385— explanatory 
speech, 391 

Speeches delivered at the inaugu- 
ration of President Kruger as 
State President (12th May, 
1898), 333 

Standard Bank: Eefusal to ad- 
vance money to the South Afri- 
can Eepublic in 1885, 179 

State Attorney of the South Afri- 
can Eepublic: Jorissen, Dr., dis- 
missal of, 174 ; Smuts, Mr. J. C, 
appointment of, 264; State Presi- 
dent of the South African Ee- 
public (see presidency) 

State Secretary of the South Afri- 
can Eepublic : Fischer, Abraham, 
election of — refusal of appoint- 
ment, 264; Leyds, Dr., election 
of, 189; re-election, 264; Eeitz, 
Mr. F. W., election of, 264 

Stellaland and Goshenland: Diffi- 
culties (see western frontier 
question); foundation of, 170; 
incorporation with Cape Colony 
due to Mr. Ehodes, 192 

Steyn, Douw, of Bulhoek Farm, 
grandfather of President Kru- 
ger, 3 

Steyn, Elisa, mother of President 
Kruger, 3 

Steyn, Johannes : Commandant gen- 
eral, appointment by Command- 
ant General Schoeman, 71; 
Jeppe, demand for surrender of, 
72, 73 

Steyn, President: Annexation of 



the Orange Free State by Great 
Britain— President Steyn 's proc- 
lamation, 409; character sketch, 
259; election as president, 258; 
speech at annual session of the 
Volksraad of the Orange Free 
State (2d April, 1900), 381; 
war between the South African 
Eepublics and Great Britain — 
Orange Free State, attitude of 
—correspondence with Sir A. 
Milner, 293-303; speech in the 
Volksraad — Orange Free State 
ranging herself on the side of 
the sister Eepublic, announce- 
ment (2d April, 1900), 381 

Strijdom, Mrs.: Mr. Kruger 's 
amusing experience with, 84 

Strijdpoort in Waterberg district, 
Potgieter 's attack on — Eooi 
Kaffirs mistaken for Moseli- 
katse's men, 10 

Supreme Court: Chief Justice 
Kotze disputing the validity of 
resolutions of the Volksraad, 
254; dismissal of the Chief Jus- 
tice, 257; Kruger 's. President, 
defence, 356, 357 

Suzerainty question: Abolition of 
the suzerainty by the convention 
of 1884— South African Eepub- 
lic contention, 250; Derby's, 
Lord, dispatch, 250; Leyds 's, 
Dr., reply of 16th April, 1898, 
250; Eobinson, Sir H., opinion 
of, 250; Chamberlain's, Mr. J., 
contention that the convention of 
1881 held good, 250, 251, 279; 
Chief Justice, dismissal of, ap- 
peal to the English suzerainty — 
Mr. Kruger 's defence of the dis- 
missal of the chief justice, 357; 
condition laid down in alterna- 
tive proposal to Mr. Chamber- 
lain's joint commission proposal 
on the franchise question, 282, 
283; Chamberlain, Mr., dispatch 
of 30th August, 1897, and Mr. 
Eeitz 's reply, 285, 286; inde- 
pendence of South African Ee- 
public endangered by British 
claim— Mr. Eeitz 's letter of 15th 
September, 1899, 289; Kruger 's. 
President, statement in the 
Volksraad uncontradicted by 



438 



INDEX 



England, 178; London Conven- 
tion — repeal of suzerainty, 176 

Swaziland: Annexation of Swazi- 
land by South African Kepublic, 
proposal, 201, 202; Kruger's, 
President, efforts in favor of, 
203 ; opposition in England, 202 ; 
Bunu — murder of Umbaba and 
refusal to appear before the Su- 
preme Court at Bremersdorp, 
265; armed force sent into 
Swaziland by Government of 
South African Eepublic, 265, 
266; jlight of Bunu to Zululand, 
266; Milner's, Sir A., interfer- 
ence, 265, 266; punitive meas- 
ures — agreement between the 
Government of the Eepublic 
and Sir A. Milner, 266, 267; 
convention of 1893, 205; con- 
ferences between President Kru- 
ger and Sir H. Loch at Coles- 
berg and Pretoria, 222; terms 
of, 222, 223; convention of 1894, 
224; clause deciding eases within 
the competence of the Supreme 
Court, addition of, 267; first 
convention, 205; government of 
Swaziland handed over to com- 
mittee of Boers and English- 
men, 202; King Umbandine 's 
request for a British adviser, 
202; preliminary agreement— 
draft proposals, 204, 205; Kru- 
ger's, President, refusal to ac- 
cept, 205; Swaziland question — 
Swaziland taken from South 
African Eepublic by Eoyal Com- 
mission of 1881, 201; transfer 
to South African Eepublic — 
Swazi opposition, deputation to 
England, 223; Winton, Sir P., 
interview with General Joubert, 
202 

Swimming the Vaal in flood, in 
order to visit his betrothed: 
President Kruger's daring, 12 
note 

Tariff war resulting from Trans- 
vaal Government scheme for 
equal division of railway profits 
between Cape Colony, Natal, and 
the Transvaal, 226; Cape Gov- 
ernment objections, alternative 



proposed, 226; Cape railways re- 
duction of tariff, 226; closing 
the drifts — reply of the South 
African Eepublic to the Cape 
wagon transport policy, 227; 
Chamberlain 's, Mr., ultimatum 
to the Eepublic — condition that 
Cape Colony should bear half 
the cost of war, 227; London 
Convention, violation of, 227; 
Netherlands South African rail- 
way, raising tariff, 226; wagon 
transport from the Cape fron- 
tier to Johannesburg, 226 

Tempus (President Kruger 's 
horse) : Death of, due to tse-tse 
flies, 29; habits of, 27 

Theunissen, N. (brother-in-law) : 
Hunting experiences shared with 
President Kruger — buffalo hunt- 
ing, 25; rhinoceros hunt ad- 
venture — thrashing administered 
to Kruger for recklessness, 23 

Toit, Andries du: Special court 
decision in case of, 82 

Toit, Pastor du: Commissioner 
of western border, appointment, 
171; education, tenure of office 
as director of, 215 note; flag of 
South African Eepublic hoisted 
over "proclaimed" territory on 
western border, 172 note; Joris- 
sen's, Dr., dismissal from state 
attorneyship— share in, 174; 
London Convention deputation, 
member of, 174 

Tortoise — "You must give the 
tortoise time to put out its 
head ": Significance of Presi- 
dent Kruger's phrase, 232, 233 

Trade and commerce: Increase in 
— President Kruger's announce- 
ment in the Volksraad, 371; 
Kruger's, President, fears for 
independent trade — refusal to 
allow opening of railway con- 
nections with Johannesburg 
other than Delagoa Bay Eail- 
way, 182; tariff war (see that 
title) 

Transvaal National Union : Forma- 
tion of, at Johannesburg in 
1892, 217; Johaimesburg, dis- 
turbed state of, work of the 
reformers (see Jameson Eaid) ; 



439 



INDEX 



Loch, Sir H., and the Union — 
deputation— correctness of Sir 
H. Loch's public attitude — 
charges of treachery, 221; Jo- 
hannesburg, proposed visit, 
abandonment of, on President 
Kruger's advice, 221; name, al- 
teration of, to reform commit- 
tee, 234; nature and aims of, 
218; punishment of leaders — in- 
terpretation of President Kru- 
ger's phrase, "You must give 
the tortoise time to put out its 
head," 232, 233; Uitlanders' 
grievances — manifesto, 232. (See 
also reform committee) 

Transvaal State: President Kru- 
ger's refusal to use name — res- 
toration of name South African 
EepubUc, 164 

Trek of 1835: Black servants re- 
maining in the Colony, 5; causes 
of, 3, 4 

Tritunvirate of 1880: Kruger, 
President, a member of, 151; 
proclamation drawn up by, 151; 
printing at Potchefstroom, 152 

TJitlanders : Dynamite explosion 
at Johannesburg, Uitlanders ' 
sympathy with the victims, 244; 
education of — erection of schools 
at the cost of the state, 217 
note; grievances of the Uitland- 
ers — Bloemf ontein conference 
(see that title) ; British Govern- 
ment promises to Uitlanders — 
employjnent of force to secure 
demands made by Sir A. Milner, 
281; Executive Eaad empowered 
to deal with, 197; franchise 
question (see that title) ; inter- 
vention of Great Britain (see 
that title); Kruger's, President, 
attitude towards grievance com- 
plaints, 183; mining grievances, 
appointment of the Industrial 
Commission, 252 ; Government 
measures for carrying out sug- 
gestions, 253, 254; report, 253; 
negotiations — compliant attitude 
of the South African Eepublic 
and unyielding attitude of Sir 
A. Milner, 269, 272, 275; peti- 
tions—committee to inquire into 



genuineness of petitions — Presi- 
dent Kruger's offer, 274; Queen 
Victoria, petitions to, drawn up 
by South African League — first 
petition — Mr. Fraser 's refusal 
to receive petition — Mr. Cham- 
berlain's censure, 270, 271; sec- 
ond petition — spurious signa- 
tures, 271; South African Ee- 
public — petition from Uitlanders 
to the Government declaring 
satisfaction with administra- 
tion of country, 272; false sig- 
natures. Sir A. MUner's allega- 
tion, 274; taxation grievance — 
reduction of taxation, 183; 
" thieves and murderers " — 
misconception of President Kru- 
ger's speech at commemoration 
of declaration of independence 
at Paarde Kraal, 201; Trans- 
vaal National Union manifesto, 
232; Kruger's, President, ad- 
dress on election as president 
(12th May, 1898), 349, 350; re- 
form committee (see titles 
Transvaal National Union and 
reform committee) 

Uitlanders Council and the fran- 
chise question: Dissatisfaction 
with the law of 1899, 279; in- 
adequacy of reforms — further 
demands, 284 

Ulundi, British victory at, 134 

Umbandine, Swazi king: Eequest 
to British Government for an 
adviser, 202 

Umbigesaland : Annexation by 
England, protest by the Trans- 
vaal, 224; incorporation with 
South African Eepublic pro- 
posed, 203 

Union of South African Eepublic 
and the Orange Eree State: 
President M. W. Pretorius's 
aim, 69, 70 

United States of America: Jimmy 
Smith's arrival at Pretoria with 
school children's address to 
President Kruger, 311 

Usibepu, Zulu chief: Defeat by 
Dinizulu, 184 

Utrecht, Holland, President Kru- 
ger at, 327, 328 

Utrecht and Wakkerstroom dis- 



440 



INDEX 



tricts: British desire to keep 
back, 159 

Vaal encampments: Moselikatse's 
attack, 8 

Vaalbank Farm, birthplace of 
President Kruger, 3 

Vechtkop: Matabele attack on 
Boer laager, 7 

Venter, Commandant Piefc: Boer 
representative in transfer of 
Orange Free State from British 
to Boers, 56; commander of 
Orange Free State contingent in 
expedition against Gasibone, 64 

Venter, Koos: Mr. Kruger 's offer 
to fight Venter on behalf of 
President Pretorius, 58 

Veterinary Congress at Baden- 
Baden: South African Eepublic 
representative. President Kru- 
ger 's announcement in the 
Volksraad, 371 

Vice-president of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic, election of Mr. 
Kruger, 118; nomination of Mr. 
S. W. Burger, 386 

Victoria, Queen: " Kwaaie 

vrouw, ' ' President Kruger 's 
jest, 259 

Viljoen, Jan: Commandant of 
Marico — capture of part of 
President Kruger 's escort at 
Potchefstroom, 85, 86; Schoe- 
man party in the Civil War, ad- 
herence to, 78 

Village or Dorp: Meaning given 
to the word by Boers, 113 note 

Village population, foreign ele- 
ment in: Petitions in favor of 
annexation, 118, 114 

Villebois-MareuU, Colonel, volun- 
teer in the Boer army: Promo- 
tion to general of the Foreign 
Legion, 309 

VUliers, Sir H. de (Chief Justice 
of Cape Colony) : Intervention 
in the dispute between the judi- 
cial and state authorities of the 
South African Eepublic, 256; 
War of Independence, peace ne- 
gotiations—Sir H. de ViUiers a 
member of the Eoya! Commis- 
sion, 163 

Volksraad: Orange Free State — 



annual session, opening speech 
by President Steyn, 381; South 
African Eepublic — adjournment 
of Volksraad on declaration of 
war with Great Britain, 306; 
elections — postponement in con- 
sequence of the war, 386; Ex- 
ecutive Eaad, constitution of, 
70 note; Kruger 's. President, 
speeches in the Volksraad (12th 
May, 1898), 338; (Ist May, 
1899), 368; (2d October, 1899), 
376, 379; (7th May, 1900), 385 
— explanatory speech, 391; reso- 
lutions contrary to the conven- 
tion — Chief Justice Kotze 's 
criticism — dismissal from o£B.ce, 
254-257; Kruger 's. President, 
defence, 358; Second Volksraad, 
institution of (see franchise 
question) ; session of 1866 — 
President Kruger 's accident on 
return journey, 98 
Vorster, M. W. : Eesolution to take 
a plebiscite on the annexation, 
127 
Vryburg, capital of Stellaland, 171 
Vryheid district, formation of, 184 

Wakkerstroom district: British de- 
sire to retain, 159 

War between Great Britain, South 
African Eepublic, and Orange 
Free State, 1899-1902— annexa- 
tion of neighboring colonies — de- 
cision of the Eepublic not to an- 
nex: President Steyn 's speech 
in the Volksraad, 383; annexa- 
tion of the Orange Free State 
by Great Britain — President 
Steyn 's proclamation, 409; an- 
nexation of the South African 
Eepublic by Great Britain — 
counter proclamation, 314 ; arma- 
ments of the South African Ee- 
public, warlike preparations af- 
ter the Jameson Eaid, 247, 248; 
army of the South African Ee- 
public, Foreign Legion — promo- 
tion of Colonel de ViUebois- 
Mareuil, 309; number of South 
African Eepublic and Orange 
Free State combatants (40,000) 
— President Kruger 's speech in 
the Volksraad, 393; Boer prep- 



441 



INDEX 



arations — armaments, increase 
in, after the Jameson Eaid, 247, 
248; burghers, concentration of, 
on borders of Natal, 292; Mil- 
ner's. Sir A., correspondence 
with President Steyn, 297 _; Brit- 
ish preparations — mobilization 
of army corps, 292, 302; proc- 
lamation calling out reserves, 
303; reinforcements, withdrawal 
of— ultimatum of 9th October, 
1899, 305, 306; troops con- 
centrating on frontiers of the 
the Kepublics — explanation re- 
quested, 292 ; Steyn 's, President, 
correspondence with Sir A. Mil- 
ner, 292-303; ultimatum of 9th 
October, 1899, 304, 305; with- 
drawal of troops condition prece- 
dent to further negotiations, 
300; British war office, intelli- 
gence department preliminary- 
report — issue of ' * Military 
Notes," 277; causes of the war 
—annexation of 1877, 119, 180; 
English press hostility to the 
Eepublic, 269, 298; franchise 
pretext, 269; gold-fields discov- 
ery, 120, 180; military prepara- 
tions of Great Britain, 299; cir- 
cular dispatch from President 
Kruger to the commandant gen- 
eral and officers in the field 
(20th June, 1900), 399; (14th 
July), 405; conduct of the war 
—barbarism of the English- 
President Kruger 's . speech at 
Marseilles, 322; French press 
expose of English methods — 
President Kruger 's thanks, 324, 
325. (See also sub-headings Bed 
Cross and white flag treachery.) 
Dalmanutha— British attack on 
Botha's positions, 314; declara- 
tion of war (11th October, 
1899), 306; expenses of the 
war — position of the South Af- 
rican Eepublic treasury, 389; 
Glencoe — President Kruger 's 
exhortation to the burghers, 
308; government of the South 
African Eepublic, transfer from 
Pretoria — Machadodorp, 312 ; 
Nelspruit, 314; intervention of 



foreign powers— deputation to 
Europe — Kruger 's. President, 
speech in the Volksraad (7th 
May, 1900), 387, 388; Steyn 's. 
President, speech in the Volks- 
raad (2d April, 1900), 383; 
Kruger, President — delegation 
to Europe — proclamation by the 
Executive Eaad, 316; departure 
from Pretoria — parting from 
wife, 310; life at Waterval On- 
der, 313; speeches in the Volks- 
raad (7th May, 1900), 385, 391; 
unshaken confidence in God and 
resignation to His will, 329; 
work of advising and encourag- 
ing the burghers, 307; medical 
aid for the Boers from European 
countries, etc.— President Kru- 
ger 's gratitude, 389; members 
of the legislative and executive 
bodies called to the field, num- 
ber who had fallen, etc.— Presi- 
dent Kruger 's speech in the 
Volksraad (7th May, 1900), 385, 
386, 397; Methuen, Lord, cap- 
ture of— President Kruger 's de- 
sire that Lord Methuen should 
be released, 328, 329; Modder 
Eiver— De la Eey holding Gen- 
eral French in check, 308; oath 
of neutrality— Lord Eoberts 's 
tempting proclamations and 
President Kruger 's warning, 
312 ; Orange Free State, attitude 
of— Kruger 's. President, speech 
in the Volksraad (7th May, 
1900), 386, 387; Steyn, Presi- 
dent — announcement (2d April, 
1900), 380; correspondence with 
Sir A. Milner, 292-303; Volks- 
raad resolution (27th September, 
1899), 294; peace negotiations 
— Kruger 's. President, trust in 
God, 329, 330; South African 
Eepublic and Orange Free State 
proposals for negotiations on 
basis of both Eepublics being 
recognized as sovereign interna- 
tional states, 309, 310; Kru- 
ger 's. President, speech in the 
Volksraad (7th May, 1900), 387, 
388, 392, 393 ; Salisbury 's. Lord, 
and Mr. Chamberlain's reply— 



442 



INDEX 



President Kruger 's comments, 
392; Steyn's, President, speech 
in the Volksraad, 382; Poplar 
Grove — President Kruger 's re- 
tirement owing to General 
French's advance, 308; Pretoria 
— departure of President Kru- 
ger, 316; occupation by Lord 
Eoberts, 312; Eed Cross— white 
flag treachery by the British, 
etc., alleged — Kiuger 's. Presi- 
dent, protest, 389; Steyn's, 
President, speech on the war, 
381 ; sympathy — world-wide 
sympathy with the Boer cause — 
President Kruger 's "Volksraad 
address, 389, 397; telegram 
from President Kruger to the 
commandant general (7th July, 
1900), 403; " ultimatum " de- 
livered to British agent at Pre- 
toria (9th October, 1899), 304, 
305; Villebois-Mareuil, Colonel 
de — promotion to general of the 
Foreign Legion, 309; Volksraad, 
adjournment of, on declaration 
of war, 306; Wolseley's, Lord, 
plans for conquest and seizure 
of the two republics, 277 

"Warfare, Boer methods, superior- 
ity to English methods, 133, 134 

Warren, Sir Charles: South Af- 
rican Eepublic western border 
disturbances. Sir C. "Warren's 
mission, 173 

"Waterboer diamond territories : 
"Water boer's claim made at in- 
stigation of the English, 106 

"Waterkloof : President Kruger 's 
home as an independent member 
of Boer community, 12 

Waterval Onder: President Kru- 
ger 's life at, after transfer of 
the government from Pretoria, 
314 

Wessels, C. H. : War of 1899-1902, 
intervention of foreign powers 
— member of deputation to Eu- 
rope, 309 

Western frontier question: Four- 
teen Streams meeting, 173; com- 
missioners appointed, 173 ; 
Ehodes's, Mr., attitude at meet- 
ing, 173; frontier fixed by the 



commissioners, 173 ; Kruger 's, 
President, mission, 173; Mont- 
sioa's appeal to South African 
Eepublic, 171; proclamation is- 
sued by South African Ee- 
public, subject to London Con- 
vention, 172; flag of South 
African Eepublic hoisted over 
" proclaimed " territory by du 
Toit, 172 note; proclamation 
disallowed by Great Britain and 
recalled, 172, 173; restoration to 
South African Eepublic of ter- 
ritory taken by British in 1881, 
175; Transvaal Government de- 
barred from assisting Eooigrond- 
ers by London Convention, 171 

Willoughby, Sir J.: Officer in 
command of the Jameson Eaid, 
237 

Winton, Sir Francis de: Appoint- 
ment as special envoy to Swazi- 
land, 202; Joubert, General, in- 
terview with, 202 

Witwatersrand gold-fields, discov- 
ery of, 180, 182 

Wolmarans, A. D. W.: Church 
union of 1881 — leader of burgh- 
ers withdrawing from, 207, 208; 
Executive Eaad, member of — 
election — President Kruger 's an- 
nouncement in the Volksraad, 
368; retirement — President Kru- 
ger 's announcement in the Volks- 
raad, 371; Kjuger's, President, 
visits to, 88, 328; war of 1899- 
1902, intervention of foreign 
powers— member of deputation 
to Europe, 305 

Wolseley, Lord: Annexation of 
the Transvaal, phrase as to ir- 
revocable nature of, 140; Secu- 
cuni. Chief, subjection of, 140; 
war of 1899-1902— plans for 
conquest and seizure of the two 
republics, 277 

Wood, Sir E. : War of Indepen- 
dence — numbers of Boers en- 
gaged, questions as to, 162; 
peace negotiations of 1881, 159; 
British representative, 158; Kru- 
ger 's. President, difficulty in ob- 
taining Sir E. Wood's signa- 
ture to provisional protocol, 



443 



INDEX 



160; Eoyal Commission, Sir E. 
Wood a member of, 162, 163 

Zeerust, Boer victory over Mata- 
bele, 8 

Zoutpansberg district: Kruger's, 
President, expedition against 
rebel Kaffirs in 1867, 99; Kru- 
ger's. President, visit in 1868 — 
reception by Kaffir chiefs, cen- 
sus of Kaffirs, etc., 101, 102 

Zuid AfriTcaan: Publication of 
Dr. Jooste's letter on the nature 
of the opposition to aimexa- 
tion, 126 ; Kruger 's, President, 



reply — suggestion of a plebiscite 
rejected by British Government, 
126 

Zulu war of 1879: British claim 
to Cetewayo's territory, 133; 
Cetewayo, capture of — rumors 
of British treachery, 134; 
Isandlhana, British defeat at, 
134; Kruger 's. President, offer 
to Sir B. Frere, 133; Kruger 's, 
President, refusal to assist the 
British, 134; Ulundi, British 
victory at, 134 

Zwartkopje, battle of, 89 



444 















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